A little bit of everything
by Aninat131
Summary: Everyone has a story, be it Penny, Mittens, or even Rhino. Their thoughts, their actions, and reasons behind their actions will tell this tale. How Mittens and Rhino were adopted, the fate of the 'Bolt' tv show, and a story of how a cat struggles to find herself and decide on her newfound feelings for a certain white canine. All these tales and more will be revealed in this story.
1. Setting the Scene

**A/N:** In case you were wondering what this story is about, I watched the movie, and I liked it, but somehow the ending wasn't enough for me. I hope to tie up any loose ends and create a better ending to this wonderful movie. I hope you will enjoy "A little bit of everything".

* * *

**Chapter 1: Setting the scene**

Sunset. It was something beautiful to see when there were no other distracting objects around. No electronic gadgets, no noise making cars, nothing to tear you away from one of nature's many wonders. Orange light painted the horizon, with lines of clouds floating past lazily, ignorant of all that happened below them or whoever was watching.

And it just so happened that below them, a cat was seated on the porch of a house, gazing at the natural beauty that had graced the skies. She was lost in thought; her eyes seemed a thousand miles deep. She hardly moved an inch and said nothing; after all, there was no reason to interrupt this moment of tranquillity.

"Mittens?"

And the spell was broken, just like that. Mittens blinked, snapping out of her trance, and turning to face the source of the question. A diminutive white shepherd emerged from inside the house, walking up to her.

"Hey, Wags," she replied softly, her collar jingling as she spoke.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked.

"Why not? The sunset is free for everyone to see anyway."

Bolt smiled, and sat down next to her. For a while, they just stared at the horizon in peaceful silence, neither of them saying anything. But after a few minutes, Mittens broke the silence.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Bolt nodded slowly.

"Yeah, it's nothing like the show set. It's so much more…real. I've seen it quite a few times, but I never seem to get bored of it."

"You really don't know what you've been missing, Bolt. I guess the set made it look real enough to you. At least, until it burned down." She smirked.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me." Bolt said, turning to her. "What made you come back?"

"Come again?"

"You know…just before the fire. Why'd you come back? You had everything you wanted: Food, shelter…well, I'm pretty sure that's all you wanted."

"Well, it's quite a long story, Wags. Might take a while, ya know."

Bolt shrugged. "Well, I've got time. It's not like I'm going anywhere anytime soon."

"It's only been a week since the fire, Wags. I'm still…adjusting, you know? Need some time to settle down and all that."

"You mean being a house pet? Don't worry, it's not as bad as it seems." He grinned wryly.

Mittens sighed, in apparent irritation. "Wags, I've been a housecat for most of my life. I know what it's like."

"Oh…yeah," he replied sheepishly, his grin slowly disappearing. He felt a little awkward bringing up Mittens' previous people; after all, it wasn't something she liked to talk about. Even during the cross-country trip, she had kept it from him all the way until Vegas. It was obvious the whole abandoning issue had left her rather…bitter, to put it mildly.

"Bolt, where are you boy?" Penny called from inside the house. Bolt's ears perked up immediately.

"Looks like Penny's calling. You should go."

"Right." He was about to turn and leave, but then he paused.

"Mittens, if there's anything wrong, you know—"

"I know, Bolt. I know. Thanks." She forced a smile.

Once he was out of sight, she sighed to herself in exasperation. He had said two things that she didn't want to hear. Why she came back for him, and the current one she was presently mulling over: The fact that she was now a house pet.

She wondered to herself: _Why am I being like this? I should have gotten over this by now…_

But she knew that it wouldn't be easy to. Her previous owners—or people, as Bolt would put it—made her this way. She believed in them, and they left her alone right as she did that. It was cruel really—you cheat someone of their feelings just when they are strongest. That experience had left a wound so deep in her heart, she thought it would never heal.

The bell on her collar jingled again as she shook her head sadly. Her collar, she thought. She remembered vividly, removing it by force and tossing it aside in a random alley in the New York streets after she couldn't find them anymore. She had found a broken fence to catch the collar on to and tugged on it until it snapped in two. After that, she walked as far away as she could from there, never looking back again. She had spent a whole week trying to find them, searching every street in the area, questioning everybody around who she could, but the answer was always the same.

No information whatsoever. It was like they disappeared in the middle of the night. Strangely, she didn't remember how they disappeared, but only what happened after. Maybe she just forgot, or her mind blocked it out on purpose. Either way, they were gone, and she didn't want to think of them anymore.

Until now.

Now she was forced to think of them, no matter how much she didn't want to. That was because she was in a family again. Doubts about whether her new family would really care genuinely for her remained.

Even though Penny's mom was nice, and Penny treated her as well as she did Bolt, Mittens had not been very responsive to their attention. She would still flinch at Penny's touch, and keep away from them as much as possible. She still wondered if she could forgive and forget, lest the same thing happened again like with her previous owners.

She was just scared; scared to have another hole blown in her heart again.

_Can I…really trust them? Is it time for me to just accept it and move on? Can I allow myself to love again?_

It was hard, really. It becomes harder to trust again after you lose it the first time.

_No. I can trust Bolt, _she told herself. _He trusted me. I trust him. But…can I trust Penny? What if she doesn't love me as much as Bolt and doesn't want me?_

"Hey, Mittens." She turned around at Bolt's voice. He was there, with Penny standing next to him.

She was so lost in thought; night had fallen without her noticing it.

"Hey girl, I brought some food for you." She sat down next to her and set down a small bowl of cat food.

Mittens had nothing against Penny in particular, but she just didn't feel too comfortable around people yet. The last few days had been no problem; Penny had been too busy with other matters to really care about her. But now things were calming down, and everybody was finally starting to relax.

_And she's going to worry about me now that she has the time, _Mittens mused to herself.

"What's wrong girl? Are you sick or something? Well, the vet did say you were fine," Penny said, cocking her head with a puzzled look on her face.

"Come on Mittens, you haven't eaten anything," Bolt said, padding over and sitting next to her. He nudged the bowl closer to her, urging her to eat.

She was still edgy, but with Bolt next to her, she felt safer, more relaxed, and she started eating. It didn't taste as good as the food they ate in Las Vegas—in fact, it was rather stale—but she wasn't complaining.

Penny watched quietly the whole time Mittens ate. When Mittens glanced up at her, she smiled wordlessly, assuring her that she was a friend. After all the food was gone, Penny cautiously placed a hand between Mittens' ears and gently stroked her down her back. Mittens tensed up at first, still a little bit wary, but slowly, she allowed herself to be stroked, and relaxed. Her stiff body went limp, while her eyelids closed halfway blissfully as she savoured the attention. Dreams of happy endings filled her head.

It was funny—just a year ago she had vehemently forced it into her brain that happy endings were a myth. And now here she was, sitting contently in what appeared to be a quintessential example of it. Penny took the chance and lifted her up onto her lap. Mittens didn't resist. She elicited a soft purr, much to the pleasant surprise of both Bolt and Penny. She could feel a few layers of ice around her heart melting away as she herself melted into Penny's arms.

It had been a long time since she was last loved—or cared—by anyone. It didn't matter if the love were to only last a while. She just wanted to allow herself to enjoy it now.

She remembered Bolt singing Penny's praises many times through the cross-country trip. He would go on and on about how she would love and care for him: Bathe him, take him for walks, sleep next to him at night—the list went on. Truth be told, she felt sick hearing him talk about her back then, but she didn't say anything until they got to Las Vegas. She was sceptical of his claim; she didn't want to believe it, just because her own owners left her. But now, she felt that maybe he was right after all.

Bolt watched this scene unfold with a smile on his face; it seemed there was hope for Mittens to recover and heal after all.

* * *

Mittens awoke with a start, and realised she had been sleeping. She attempted to move, but there was something on top of her. Blinking, she realised she was in Penny's room, sleeping on Penny's bed, with Penny's arm resting on top of her. Embarrassment sunk in; she had fallen asleep, and Penny had carried her into her bedroom to spend the night.

_So much for all that talk about taking a long time before I could trust her. I just fell asleep in her arms!_

At least, that was one problem out of the way. But as she was about to relax, a distant part of her mind clicked as another problem surfaced.

Bolt.

Like Penny, he was also fast asleep. He was within a few inches of her, and she could hear the steady rhythm of his breathing. As she watched the steady rising and falling of his chest, the question he asked made its presence known in her head again.

_Why did I go back for him?_

It was a simple question, with a supposedly simple answer. The answer was not the problem, but the underlying implications that lay within. She knew that, she would have to tell him eventually, but she wouldn't know how to.

Because now, her feelings had changed. And that made it all the more difficult to tell him.

Over the course of the cross country trip, Mittens had become a different person. Bolt had taken her life and turned it upside down. Back in Vegas, she had been ready to stay and enjoy life to the fullest—after all, it had everything she wanted—but Bolt made her hesitate. He changed her mind. Had it been a few weeks earlier, she would never have hesitated to let Bolt go his own way.

_How did things end up like this? I actually abandoned what I had been longing for the longest time to find him. Why?_

A smug little part of her mind echoed the answer, but she chose to ignore it.

Sighing, she tried thinking of other things to do. She turned her gaze to the open window in the room. The night was silent and peaceful, nothing like New York. Right now, New York and its desolate streets seemed a thousand miles away. New York…it was the place Bolt ended up, it was the place where he found her—albeit with the help of some annoying pigeons—and it was the place where everything began.

Mittens had been doing a lot of introspection lately. The cross country journey was one she had been reflecting on ever since being adopted by Penny. The whole week had been quite busy: Penny and her mom were busy moving stuff around that they had brought from the studio, Bolt was trying to help out, like he always did, and Rhino was…just Rhino. Her? She was busy trying to get her bearings. Everything was whirling by in a flash, and just like that, she had food, water, a home, and a family. It was a little bit too much to take in a short time.

It was almost satisfactory, living on the streets of the Big Apple, bullying gullible pigeons out of their food. Although there was some kind of sick humour in bluffing completely 'ridonculous' pigeons, Bolt had brought much more than that. In accompanying him, she got to experience real fun, enjoyment and companionship, something she had been lacking for the longest time. His antics had actually brought a genuine smile and laughter to her face while his naïve nature, caring heart and steadfast determination changed her perception of life.

Her thoughts drifted to the night had Bolt had sprung her out from animal control. That night, she had felt so helpless, so hopeless, as pathetic as she had felt in her entire life, second only to how she felt when she was abandoned. Bolt had somehow managed to escape from the truck before it reached the shelter, and it made her sick to her stomach that he had gotten her into that mess, and he managed to get away scot-free, while leaving her with the short straw. She was ready to blame it all on him, but she couldn't.

Because he came back.

He could have so easily left her to rot in the cell, but he risked his own freedom, his chance to find his person to break her out. What could she say? He had gone and done something no one would have done. But then again, Bolt was not just any regular 'someone'.

Mittens shifted under Penny's hand so she could rest in a more comfortable position. The memories of that event came back to mind. One part in particular kept replaying itself in her head. It was right after they escaped from animal control…

* * *

Dawn was just breaking, and small streams of light entered the house on wheels. They had just escaped from the animal control building, and had found a means of transport—just in case animal control was still hunting for them, although it was unlikely—It was there that Bolt had shown his vulnerability. He was broken after realising the bitter truth—his life was a lie. It couldn't have gotten much worse than that.. It was all quiet, as it should be in the early morning, sans the humming of the engines, and one overly-excited jubilant hamster known as Rhino, who was still ranting about the not-so-great escape.

"I can't believe it! My whole life I've wanted to see a real life superbark!" he started rolling away to who knows where, still caught up in his rant. "You. Are. Legendary!"

Mittens and Bolt exchanged glances as he disappeared. The words, although coming from a small creature, seemed to have a prominent effect on Bolt. He appeared crestfallen as he sat down on the linoleum floor, sighing and turning away. Mittens had unknowingly found herself sympathising with him, having found out everything he believed in was false, just like her belief in her people, which had long since evaporated. She cocked her head to one side, inviting him to continue. He obliged her.

"Mittens? If…er…if I don't chase bad guys, then what am I? I mean…" He sighed. He didn't have to clarify. She understood.

"Ah don't worry about it," she said in a dismissive tone. "Being a regular dog is like, the greatest gig in the world okay?" He still didn't look the least bit convinced. She had to cheer him up somehow.

He did come back for her, after all. She owed him that much.

"Look, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret, okay? A little known cat secret." His eyes shifted up, but just ever so slightly. "You know why we hate dogs? Cause we wanna be dogs. We've got dog complexes." It was only half true, really. But if it cheered him up, well, the end justifies the means, she guessed.

"But, what do dogs do?" It seemed like a completely ridiculous question coming from a dog himself, but then again he believed he had superpowers, so Mittens guessed it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to assume Hollywood messed up his social life.

_Well then, I guess it's now my job to show him._

Over the next hour, Mittens tried to recall everything she could about dogs: their behaviour, attitudes, daily activities…just about everything she could think of. Still, she avoided talking about herself personally; nobody needed to know about her past encounter with humans—she didn't want to dredge up old memories that would make her upset.

"…and this is your dog bowl." She said, jumping languidly from one table top to another.

"What is?" Bolt questioned, looking around the kitchen. Probably for some container, Mittens thought. _Poor guy, he must have been so restrained._

"This! The entire floor! If it hits the ground, it goes to the hound. How cool is that?" Bolt gaped, while Mittens smirked. It was like telling a young child about the joys and magic of Christmas and Santa Claus.

They moved through the kitchen, the bedrooms, and finally the living room. She sighed blissfully as she sat down and stared at the fireplace.

"…and on cold nights, this, and a ball of yarn? Oh it doesn't get any better than that."

Bolt had gone on enough missions—all faked of course, as he now knew, but still—to know that something was amiss with Mittens, from the way she spoke. It was as if she was hiding something.

"You…er… you seem to know quite a lot about these places." He said, one eyebrow raised questioningly. Mittens' heart skipped a beat and she stiffened. But no matter how she felt on the inside, only a slight widening of her eyes showed it.

"Yeah I did my time in one of these," she said quickly, defusing the allegations as fast as she could. But she was quick to reason it out. "But I'm more of an alley cat at heart you know? Sprung out first chance I got, never looked back," she said, casting a quick glance back at him before turning back to the fireplace. She tried to maintain her composure, but she could feel his penetrating gaze fixate on her, eyebrows still raised. It was obvious he wasn't buying it. Her heartbeat quickened. He was about to ask when—

"Rhino is awesome…" sounded an ominous voice from above. They both turned simultaneously to the air vent. "He's so awesome…"

"How's Rhino doing that? I thought you said there were no such things as superpowers." Bolt questioned accusingly.

Saved by the hyperactive rodent. How ironic.

"It's not a superpower Wags, it's just…oh just follow me." She trotted off trying to explain, Bolt following behind.

"He's beyond awesome. He's…he's be-awesome!" The ball of fur started laughing to himself, impressed with his wordplay, that is, until he noticed the two of them standing right behind him.

"Er…I am be-awesome," he said sheepishly, realising his antics had actually been heard. By his idol, no less. Mittens just rolled her eyes. Bolt was more concerned with the vent, staring at it intently. _Funny,_ _I never heard any echoes in any of the vents in Calico's base, _he thought. He sniffed at it, and realised that a pleasant breeze was running through it. He blissfully murmured, enjoying the cool wind brush across his face with his eyes closed. Mittens, having noticed this, grinned expectantly.

"I think it's about time I introduced you to the regular dog pièce de résistance."

It was amazing what a dog couldn't know about being a dog. Mittens had found herself tongue-tied when Bolt asked her why dogs fetched sticks and other objects for people. Eventually, she found an answer.

"It's a dog thing, ya know?" Which came to be her standard answer for every question Bolt asked that started with why.

It took a while, but finally Bolt had grasped the concept of "Go fetch the stick". Mittens was feeling rather proud of herself—as a cat—for being able to command a dog to do something at her will. Rhino, trying to be as useful as possible, went looking for another one of the many waffle world maps that lay around.

"Hey Bolt, I've managed to acquire the navigation device you wanted," he said with the map between his teeth.

"Hang on, Rhino," Mittens said, waving the stick in front of a captivated Bolt. His eyes followed every movement of the stick intently as it danced around him.

"Ready Bolt? Fetch!" She swung her front paw as hard as she could. Bolt yipped and immediately leaped into action, bounding off in the direction of the throw.

"Hey cat, why are you asking Bolt to do all this? It seems degrading for a person of calibre as high as his."

From the short time Mittens had spent with Rhino, she had learned something: When trying to explain something to Rhino, you could either spend a long time trying to reason with his logic, or just play along with his little fantasy and get it over with quick. Mittens opted for the latter.

"Well Rhino, Bolt needs to relax a little, you know? Even heroes need breaks. And he seems to be enjoying it." She thought a little. "And as a bonus, it'll keep him in shape while we look for the green-eyed man."

"I guess so," Rhino said, shrugging. And the problem was over.

Bolt learnt fast. Without Mittens having to tell him, he slowly picked up hints on what he was supposed to do. It was like being trained for a mission all over again, only now it didn't involve commands to search and destroy targets and locations. These commands were way more fun and enjoyable. He vaguely remembered Penny trying to play with him like this during his puppy years, but it was cut short when he was "blessed" with his powers and given the solemn duty of protecting his person. _If only Penny would play with me like that again…_

An hour of fun passed. Although it was not the fun Mittens was normally used to, it sufficed. Bolt seemed a little miffed when she only pretended to throw the stick, but he quickly got over it and returned the favour by playfully bowling her over, which led to both canine and feline laughter filling the warm afternoon.

After Bolt had finally had enough, he sat next to Mittens, who was trying to pinpoint exactly where to go from that point on. Rhino was dancing around the map in his ball, commenting and advising—very loudly—strategies that Bolt could use when confronting the green-eyed man, which made her job significantly harder. She found it annoying, but Bolt didn't seem to mind. In fact, he didn't seem to mind a lot of things. _If only I could be that happy-go-lucky_, she thought.

"So, if I continue along this road, it'll take me to where Penny is?"

Mittens sighed. "That's the gist of it, yeah. You just need to make sure you're moving west. That's the best way to know that you're on the right track."

Bolt whimpered slightly. "But what if I go the wrong way?"

"Don't worry, if it gets bad, you can eat Rhino."

"Bolt, sir! I have a status report to er…report!" Rhino interrupted, apparently not noticing the snide comment. He stood and saluted his idol.

"Go ahead, Rhino."

"It appears the mobile utility vehicular transport is departing." _Mobile what?_

"All right. Then I guess it's time to go. You ready, Rhino?"

"Always ready, Bolt! Let us continue on our quest to rescue Penny from the green-eyed man!"

"Great." Bolt slowly turned to Mittens, with a little nervousness in his voice. His ears flattened a little. This was the moment he had been dreading. He knew now that Mittens had no obligation to follow him.

"Um…Mittens? Are you…coming with us?"

Mittens considered it. She had nowhere to stay, nowhere to go. Well, she could always go back to New York and continue tormenting gullible pigeons, but there wasn't much fulfilment in that. Even if it was only for a short while—until Bolt found his person—Mittens wanted to be with him, to spend her time with the big lug. _But what will happen to me after he finds his person? _She shook her head. She would cross that bridge when she came to it. For now, she wanted to enjoy life, and being with Bolt was the best way to do it.

"Sure, Wags. Why not?"

His ears shot up in delight. "Really? Thanks so much Mittens!" He jumped on her and knocked her over, licking her all over her face in doggy delight.

"Oh—hey! Bolt, you're getting slobber all over me."

"Sorry," he replied sheepishly, climbing off of her.

As they boarded the mobile utility vehicular transport, Mittens took one last glance back at the road that led to New York. _No turning back now. _She was leaving behind everything to accompany two complete strangers on some absurd odyssey, both who she thought were mildly lacking mental faculties.

And that was just the beginning. _Wonderful. Just wonderful._

_

* * *

_

Mittens knew that it was Bolt's fault that she had been _literally _dragged across the country while being battered and bruised in the process—being smashed into a mailbox and jumping on and off moving vans and trains were just a few examples. But then again, it was also his fault that she now had a home with a family to love and care for her.

What an incredible paradox.

The bed shifted, producing a creaking sound that snapped Mittens out of her reverie. Bolt was shifting uncomfortably, making soft whimpering noises with his eyes screwed shut in apparent discomfort. Worried, Mittens extended a paw to his shoulder, but quickly retracted it when he flinched and started squirming. After a few seconds though, he drifted back off into peaceful sleep. Mittens wondered what would happen if she told him the answer to his question.

_Would he…feel the same way?_

Whatever the case, the question was giving her a headache. She tried to push aside the question and try her very best—although she expected it to fail—to get some hours of rest.

After all, there was always tomorrow to figure it out.


	2. Mumbo Jumbo

**A/N:** I will be leaving for a family holiday until Christmas, so I will not be able to post anything until perhaps the new year. Holidays are meant to be enjoyed, after all. In the meantime, i present you this chapter for your enjoyment.

Thanks to seniorcopycat, bolt fan 21 and Bane767 for reviewing. And thanks to Evarice for his contributions to this chapter. See if you can guess what they are?

* * *

**Chapter 2: Mumbo-Jumbo**

Something was _definitely wrong._

That had been the only thing running through Penny's mind ever since she woke up the morning of the Friday one week after the fire. It was not _wrong_ per se, but just…_unusual._ It all started about an hour after she woke up. When she woke up, the black cat that had followed Bolt to the hospital was still there, asleep under her arm. And then it occurred to her, although somewhat belatedly:

_Doesn't Bolt hate cats?_

And he wasn't subtle about it either. Whenever he even caught a whiff of one, he'd jump to his feet and growl in apprehension, unwavering, trying to protect his person from the green-eyed man and all who associated with him. And mostly, they were cats. The scriptwriters apparently thought it was a good idea. Personally, Penny thought it was stupid.

But now, here he was, sleeping next to one. He didn't seem to mind it in the least—in fact, he seemed to be enjoying it.

_What the heck is going on?_

She wouldn't know this yet, but that was the least surprising thing she would discover that day.

* * *

The morning passed without much excitement. Penny unloaded the last of the delivery boxes—seeing those for seven days in a row can make you go mad—and she declared, with much vehemence, that she could finally relax.

Or so she thought.

Now, the plan for the day was to go grocery shopping to fill up the kitchen shelves. Penny had whined about wanting to rest after all the unpacking, but eventually she agreed to accompany her mother, although it was half-hearted. This would leave the three animals with the entire house to themselves for the first time. Naturally, Penny was concerned.

"But what if he runs off again, mom?"

"Don't worry dear. It's just grocery shopping. We'll only be gone a couple of hours."

"But, he might freak out again! What if he hurts himself trying to get out? Or…or…"

"Honey, trust me, he'll be fine."

"But Mittens, she could be in danger!" Bolt whined, having a similar conversation with Mittens.

"Wags, I've told you already, it's just grocery shopping. Besides, they'll only be gone a couple of hours."

"But what if someone comes out and ambushes her? Or what if she falls down and nobody's there to help her? Or…or…"

"Bolt, trust me, she'll be fine."

Penny's mom and Mittens sighed in exasperation simultaneously. This was not going well at all.

"Think about it Bolt, if they don't go, we all won't have anything to eat tomorrow," Mittens said.

Bolt acquiesced, but only slightly.

"Then…why can't she bring me along?"

"Well, some people just don't like animals. So the store won't allow pets in."

"But…but—"

"Look Bolt, why don't you find something else to do? There's plenty of stuff you can do around here."

"Like what?" Bolt asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Why not sleep? It's such a nice afternoon to do it," she said, yawning and stretching herself on the sofa.

"But I'm not tired."

"Oh, you're so difficult. Why don't you just…er…watch tv with Rhino or something?" Those seemed to be the magic words. The moment she said it, Rhino jumped up jubilantly, a wide grin plastered across his small face.

"That's an awesome idea! I get to watch the magic box with the one and only Bolt! This…this is totally awesome!"

"See? He seems happy about it." Bolt gave her a face, but eventually gave in and agreed.

"Well, that's settled then," she said, as Penny walked into the room. She bent down and playfully tousled the fur on Bolt's head.

"Bolt, I want you to be a good boy and wait here for me, alright? I'll be back soon." Bolt whimpered and nuzzled her affectionately. She pulled him into her arms and gave him a quick kiss on his head.

"Don't worry. I'll come back soon, I promise." Outside, Penny's mom signalled for her to hurry up. "Take care of your cat friend and the hamster, alright?" She patted him on his head one last time before she walked through the doorway, shutting the door and locking it firmly behind her.

Once in the car, Penny strapped herself in and glanced one last time back at the living room through the window. She thought she noticed something odd when she looked in, but she let it go. She turned her head back to the pudgy woman seated next to her as they exited the driveway.

"Mom, do you notice something different about Bolt?"

Her mother responded without looking at her; her eyes were fixed on the road.

"No, sweetie. He's still the same old Bolt, isn't he?"

"That's the thing, you see. Ever since he came back, it's like he's a totally different dog. He plays with me now—it's like someone taught him how to do all those dog tricks while he was gone. It's like he's…normal now."

"Well, that's good, isn't it?"

"Of course it is. But still, he came back with a cat and a hamster! You know Bolt hates cats, and I don't know what's wrong with the hamster! Every time I see him, he salutes at me with a big grin on his face. And he's always following Bolt around too."

"Well that's…odd. Are you sure you're not just imagining things?"

Penny was unsure of what to think; she was quite confident there was something up with the animals in her household, but she couldn't be sure.

"I guess I might be." She turned her head to the window, trying to think of something else. This conversation seemed to be lost on her mother; it was better to just let it go. She gazed out of it and admired the view. It was green as far as the eye could see. Some would claim that it would be boring to stare at grass and trees all the time. But after living life surrounded by machinery and buildings, this was the perfect scenery for Penny; buildings could hardly be seen in the horizon.

_Has it only been a week? _Penny thought. It had felt like forever since she had almost died. That was one experience she had no interest in going through again. But ironically, it was because of her near-death experience that they had managed to quit Sovereign Studios without any hassle—it was compensation, after all. She would never have to leave Bolt again. Now she could spend her days with him by her side, always.

She guessed it was worth the pain she endured.

"Penny?" Her mom's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Huh? Yes mom?"

"Remind me to buy some cat food at the store. I keep forgetting we have a cat now." Penny nodded silently.

_We have a cat now. And one very…special…hamster._

She frowned, wondering where in the world they could have come from. Did Bolt find them on the streets after he disappeared? She pushed that thought away. It wasn't likely that an overweight hamster would be roaming the Californian streets. A cat, maybe. But a hamster?

_Whatever it is, they seem to know Bolt pretty well. And Bolt seems to like them too._

She pressed herself back further in her seat. It was just befuddling, wondering how animals—smart animals—could materialise from nowhere. Penny didn't know where they came from, she didn't know how they managed to get into the hospital to find Bolt, but she knew how they ended up in her house. Whatever happened, she knew she would eventually find out the truth, sooner or later.

At least, that was what she hoped.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the house, a problem of massive proportions had befallen the three animals.

"I can't find the remote!" Rhino yelled in exasperation as he popped out from underneath the sofa.

"It's not here either," Bolt called out from the dining room. This problem had put a damper on their plan to laze around doing one of human beings' favourite activities—sitting down and watching your brain slowly degrade away.

All hope seemed to be lost, when suddenly Mittens called from the kitchen.

"I found it!" The other two dropped whatever they were holding and dashed into the kitchen.

When they arrived, Mittens was there, staring upwards with a not very enthusiastic look on her face. Confused, they followed her gaze, only to realise why she looked disheartened.

The remote was there, sitting on the highest shelf.

"How did it even get up there?" Rhino exclaimed in disbelief.

"I think Penny left it up there while she was unpacking. But forget how it got there. How are we going to get it down?" Bolt replied.

They simultaneously turned to Mittens.

"What?"

"You can jump the highest among us, Mittens. I think you can probably leap high enough to land on the shelf—"

"Oh no you don't," she interrupted. "I think I've had enough of falling off stuff and hurting myself in the process. You guys can go crack your skulls by yourselves. I'm going to sleep outside," she declared, walking off.

"Oh come on Mittens, I'm sure you won't fall." She still continued walking. He ran in front of her, blocking her exit.

"Please Mittens?" He pleaded. As if on cue, his ears drooped, his head tilted, and he looked up, giving her the full fury of his 'dog face'. As an added effect, he whined pitifully. Mittens arched her eyebrows, impressed; she was duly impressed with his ability, but she wasn't wavered just yet.

"Sorry Wags, but that won't work on me. I'm a cat, you know? We only do things when the reward beats the risk. And right now, breaking my back for mindless box watching doesn't seem a good trade."

Bolt was stunned; his 'dog face' had never failed before. Well, then again, it was Mittens who taught it to him, so he guessed she would have some sort of immunity to it. He frowned—there must be some other way to get her to do it.

Something clicked in his head. "Hold on Mittens, I'll be right back." He dashed out of the kitchen. Sounds of rummaging and grunting could be heard. A few moments later, Bolt walked back in, with a ball of yarn held proudly in between his teeth. Now it was Mittens' turn to be stunned. Her eyes widened and her mouth fell open.

_Where did he get that?_

Grinning wryly, Bolt knew he had caught her. Definitely, this would be enough to convince her to do it.

"Fine, I'll do it." Bolt dropped the yarn onto the ground, pleased.

"Thanks Mittens," he said.

"I just know I'm going to regret this," she said as she leaped onto the counter.

"Don't worry. I promise you won't."

Mittens was about to take a second leap up onto the shelf, but something made her hesitate. Looking a little closer, she could see that the shelf was not properly fixed in. Both ends were held together loosely by nails that had not been drilled in completely. With enough pressure, the board would eventually give way.

"Hey cat, what's taking you so long? We could be missing some high octane-fuelled action right now!" Rhino yelled from below the counter.

Mittens sighed, wishing the rodent had a 'mute' button. She positioned herself on the counter, and in one fluid motion, she leaped…and landed perfectly on the shelf.

_Well that's a surprise, _she thought. She fully expected it to collapse.

Placing the remote between her teeth, she was about to jump back down onto the counter when she heard a sharp 'crack' from right below her.

Murphy's Law just loved smacking her in the face.

Before she could react, the shelf gave way to her weight. It slanted outwards—away from the counter—and suddenly she was on a free-fall towards the ground.

Somehow, her cat righting reflexes failed her, and she couldn't straighten herself in time. Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—for her, she landed straight into Bolt's face headfirst, bowling him over. The two of them tumbled a few times before coming to rest. Luckily, she was comparatively much smaller and lighter than Bolt, so the impact did little to him. It did a lot to her, though.

"Uh…Mittens, are you okay?" Bolt asked, startled.

Mittens groaned, wondering whether constant blows to the head would liquefy her brain. She opened her eyes, and stopped breathing. Her heart was suddenly fluttering due to her awkward position: Bolt was halfway on top of her, with his muzzle only inches away from her.

"Um…yeah, I'm fine," she stammered, not trying at all to move out from under him.

"You sure?"

She tried to ignore the fluttering, and returned a smile. "Yeah, I'm sure. Let's watch some tv."

"Still regretting going up there?" Bolt grinned mischievously.

"Yup." She didn't.

* * *

Time spent walking down the aisles in the store had not eased Penny's concerns over Bolt.

She absent-mindedly pushed the trolley along the aisles as her mother dropped various items into it. She was not interested in groceries. She was still worried about Bolt, and she was interested in finding out about her new pets. They were mysterious, to say the least. Their origins and their stories were what Penny was interested in. Bolt had been gone for almost a month, and he'd come back a totally different dog. And putting the available pieces together, she deduced that it was probably due to the two of them.

_What did they do to him?_ She knew Bolt was as mentally tough as nails. Even when she told him that she was perfectly safe from the green-eyed man back then, he would still refuse to do anything other than guard her from anything and everything. After she was 'captured' by the green-eyed man, Bolt had gone berserk and ran off soon after. She didn't see him again until the grand incineration of the studio.

If she—the one Bolt loved the most—couldn't get him to change his mind-set, how could a cat and a hamster do just that?

This seemed to be a problem that was unsolvable. The reason? A simple case of being unable to communicate with them. It wasn't like she could walk straight up to them and ask what happened in the one month he had been gone.

Or could she?

She shook her head and gave herself a mental head slap for even considering that. _They are just animals, _she told herself. She knew Bolt was a smart dog, and that he understood her feelings roughly, but there was no way she could actually ask a question and expect him to specifically answer back.

They were just animals, after all.

What could they possibly do?

* * *

Just as she thought that, Rhino was preparing to turn on the tv.

He was jumping up and down excitedly; Bolt was waiting in anticipation, while Mittens was busy playing with the ball of yarn Bolt had produced. Finally, a man materialised on the black screen.

"…_And thus the pastry chefs banished the foul muffin to the forests of Buttersburg, ending the slavery of all cupcakes in Sugarland. This however, enraged the Muffin Titan whose wrath would be known to all of Dessert Town…"_

"Wow! So this is television, huh Mittens?"

"Yeah, really bad television anyway," she said, not even looking up as a talking muffin—with hands and legs, and an obscenely sick smile—danced onscreen while music worthy of being used for torture played repetitively.

"It's what humans do to amuse themselves." She glanced over. "And in this case, Rhino as well."

"It's amazing! So, you mean people have been watching me every week on this thing?"

"Pretty much. Although," she admitted, "I've never actually seen your show before."

Bolt was surprised. "I've been doing the whole 'superhero' thing for a few years, at least. You mean you've never seen my show once?

"I guess not. It wasn't really the kind of thing my owners liked to watch."

"Then we must remedy the situation!" Rhino yelled, furiously pushing a button repeatedly. The channels started changing from the weather, to a sports channel…

"Rhino, I'm not really interested in watching our friend here mindlessly blow up—"

"Found it!"

The channel opened with a scene of a car exploding. On screen, Bolt, in all his canine glory, emerged from the burning wreckage of what used to be a multipurpose van, his eyes glowering. Epic music plawas playing. Both Mittens and Bolt—the one on the sofa—gaped. "Wow." The ball of yarn fell to the floor. Nobody bothered to pick it back up.

"You see, isn't he awesome! I think this is a re-run of last season, where Bolt flies off to China to stop Calico from controlling the—"

"Shh," Both of them willed him simultaneously, their eyes still glued on the screen.

Rhino was impressed. It seemed the magic box had a powerful hold on his two friends. He could hear cheering from them as tv-Bolt grabbed a tank with his mouth and hurled it straight into a helicopter. Rhino grinned.

It had become apparent: The might of the magic box was not to be trifled with.

After an hour of high octane-fuelled action, the commercials finally took centre stage on the screen, and the animals were taking a break.

"So, how was it?" Rhino asked, knowing the answer.

"It…it was awesome!" Bolt replied, astounded. "I didn't know that there was music and sound effects and everything. It made it look so much cooler than when I did it on the set!" Rhino seemed a little puzzled by this, but he dismissed it and turned to Mittens.

"And what about you?"

"Eh, it was fine. So-so, I guess." She replied nonchalantly.

"It didn't seem that way to me," Rhino said, smirking. "Your eyes were fixed on the screen and your mouth was wide open."

"Bah, that was just the animation effects, you know? Storyline was totally predictable. Penny's in trouble, Bolt rescues her from the green-eyed man, blah blah blah…"

"Yeah, but it's only Bolt that you're interested in, right?"

Mittens did a double-take, trying to process his words.

_Does he know? _Her heart rate suddenly doubled, not helped by the fact that Bolt was sitting right there next to them.

"I mean, everybody watches the show to see his awesomeness, right? Not for some lame story. The action's what's important!" He did a little hop in the air, pumping his front paws skyward.

Mittens heaved an inward sigh of relief. She had just mistaken his words.

"I'm hungry." Bolt's voice interrupted what could have been an awkward moment for Mittens. "You guys want something to eat?"

"That's a brilliant idea Bolt!" Not surprisingly, it was Rhino who uttered the words.

"Wags, where are you going to find food right now?"

"I don't know, I'll just poke around and see what I can find." He trotted off into the kitchen, Rhino predictably following beside him. Mittens preferred to just sit down and wait for the food to arrive.

It was a much appreciated lull in the noisy—yet entertaining—action show, although Mittens would never admit that to Rhino. She took this time to collect her tangled thoughts. It was getting harder to conceal her feelings for the stalwart canine, and she was reaching a point where she was finding it difficult to resist the temptation to just scream it in his face and get it over with. But she wouldn't. Not yet. Not until she was perfectly sure it was the correct road to travel down.

That was the hard part about life: Once you make a mistake, sometimes it becomes difficult to fix it. Like a slip of the tongue, a crime committed…

…A profession of—

"Popcorn!" she was pulled out of her thoughts.

"We've got popcorn!" A loud proclamation came from the kitchen. Bolt dragged the now half-open bag with Rhino sitting in it onto the couch. He then dug his nose in and took a munch out of the bag.

"Huh, it's bland," he said disappointedly after a few chews.

"Well, that's probably because Rhino's sitting in it. His brain's rather bland, after all," Mittens commented as she popped a few into her mouth. Rhino gave her an indignant glare.

"Now look here cat—" A sudden burst of Bolt's theme music started playing, calling both of their attentions to the tv. Words were forgotten as Bolt appeared on-screen alongside Penny, who had just knocked out a guard with her wheel bar herself.

"She's kinda hardcore, isn't she? She must have been a great actor," Mittens commented, impressed.

"Yeah, she is. She's the best. She's the nicest person I've ever known, and an awesome actor. Maybe that's why I always thought it was all real."

"Hey look, they're back." Rhino pointed out of the window. Sure enough, a car was pulling in, and it was definitely the family car. Bolt's tail started wagging in excitement, and he jumped to the front of the door, eagerly waiting for it to open. The moment it did, he gave a happy yip to welcome Penny and her mom home.

"Hey there Bolty, glad you're alright." She momentarily set down the bags to embrace him in a hug.

"Give me a moment, Bolt. I'll play with you once I put the stuff in the kitchen." Bolt yipped in approval and returned to his seat on the couch. She picked the bags back up and started walking. As she passed the couch, the cat meowed as a sign of recognition, while the hamster saluted her once more as he popped a piece of popcorn into his mouth. She smiled in return and walked pass them…

…right into the wall.

_Did I…did I just see that?_ Backtracking, she stood and stared at the scene before her.

All three of them were sitting on the couch, watching tv, and eating popcorn. What made it even stranger was that they were watching 'Bolt', her show, on the tv.

"Bolt? Is…that you buddy?" Ever the concerned one, Bolt jumped off the sofa and walked to Penny, worry evident on his face. He let out a low whine.

_Yup, I'm definitely insane. _She dropped the bags onto the floor and slowly approached them, like someone walking towards a dead corpse they just discovered: eyes bulging, fingers trembling, and a face frozen in shock to boot.

Fingers still trembling, she knelt on the ground and placed her hands on his face, rubbing it as if to make sure there wasn't metal underneath. She ran her hands down the fur on his back and checked for any sort of indication that the dog in front of her wasn't the Bolt she knew and loved. She didn't find any.

_Yes, it's definitely him._

"Bolt…" her voice was a little shaky. "Are you…watching tv?" She asked in disbelief. Bolt nodded his head. Penny thought someone had punched her in the gut. The world was suddenly spinning.

_Wait. Did he just nod his head? He's never done that before. Ever. _The implications suddenly hit her like a truck.

_Can he…understand what I'm saying perfectly? _Trembling, she decided to test the theory.

"Bolt." She said it in the most serious tone Bolt had ever heard his entire life. He squirmed a little uncomfortably under her gaze. It was sharp and focused on his own. The cat and hamster were visibly disturbed by Penny's sudden ghostly visage.

"Can you understand what I am saying?" She said it slowly, word by word.

Bolt nodded, seemingly puzzled by the question, as if it was an obvious fact that she should have known.

"You know the cat and hamster sitting on the couch?"

Bolt nodded.

"You turned on the tv?"

Bolt shook his head, indicating with his head at Rhino. Rhino's expression turned to that of a child accused of stealing a cookie from the cookie jar.

"You're saying the _hamster_ turned on the tv."

Bolt nodded.

"…and you stole and ate my bag of popcorn."

Bolt grinned sheepishly.

Penny slumped onto the ground, stunned beyond belief. The dog sitting next to her suddenly looked foreign, a stranger to her. You could see from her expression: awe, confusion and shock all rolled into one. All of it seemed too much to take in at one shot. Her brown eyes seemed tired now, and it seemed like she was unsure of how to proceed from this point on. She actually looked a little frightened of them now. The three animals seemed perplexed by her sudden change in demeanour. Bolt in particular was trembling in fear at what appeared to be someone who looked like his person but wasn't acting like her.

Just then, her mother walked in.

"Penny! You could at least put the fruits in the fridge before turning on the tv, you know." Her hands were on her hips, and a frown was forming on her face. Typical mother.

Penny shook her head blankly, still dazed. "I didn't turn it on…it…it was the hamster."

"Well, that doesn't mean you sit down and watch it with them."

"Mom! The hamster turned on the tv! They're eating popcorn! Bolt can understand me perfectly! Why are you not freaked out by this?" Penny's eyes were as big as saucers.

The rotund lady took a deep breath before sitting down next to her—which looked rather awkward due to her size—and placed an arm around her beloved daughter.

"Sweetie, in life, strange things will happen. I have seen my fair share of things like this myself. We just have to roll with them." The thought of a fat lady rolling sent Mittens into fits of laughter. Nobody seemed to notice though.

"But…but…"

"I know it seems strange, but he's Bolt, isn't he? You've known him for years. You trust him, right? No matter what happens?" She extended her other hand so that Bolt and Penny were staring at each other face to face. Bolt made it clear he understood known with a happy bark of comfort.

Staring into each other's brown eyes—a common trait they shared—Penny realised that she was right. She would always find comfort and warmth in Bolt, something she was always grateful for. In their limited time in the trailer, Bolt would always bring peace to her mind whenever she left. Whenever she appeared again for another mission, he would be ready, ready to protect his person at any cost. For Bolt, seeing Penny was the only thing that kept him sane in the trailer. She was his ray of light in his life, his only family; everything he had was in her. He trusted her inexplicably, and she, him. It was a bond that held the most importance for the both of them.

"Yes, I trust him." She pulled him into another hug. She could feel her eyes welling up.

"Oh Bolt, I'm sorry I doubted you. You're my good boy, you always have been, and always will be. I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" Her words were cracking a little now.

Although he knew Penny couldn't understand him, Bolt spoke.

"Penny…you mean the world to me, and I would never ever abandon you. I don't know why you felt so surprised seeing me like this, but just know that no matter what happens, I love you, and that will never change."

And somehow, on that Friday evening, Penny thought she could hear his words, crystal clear.

* * *

Night had fallen once more, and it was something Penny was starting to appreciate more and more as the days went by. The rest of the evening had passed rather normally in the house.

"What the heck happened to my shelf!"

Well, almost normally, anyway.

Penny was trying to think about how this whole issue of Bolt being able to understand her managed to escape her for the longest time. To be justified, most of the time, Bolt was either working on the set or trapped in the trailer. Even when she did ask him something during the filming, it did not require him to respond. Most of the time it was just "Are you ready Bolt?" or something to that effect. And because of her ridiculously packed schedule, thanks to one insane agent—good riddance to him—she never had time to spend with Bolt. And when she did, she never asked a question that required a specific answer—after all, you wouldn't expect your dog to tell you where your keys are. So, she guessed, it was possible she could have overlooked this for all these years.

Besides, Bolt knew she couldn't understand his barking anyway, so he had no reason to 'act smart' and try communicating with her. He didn't need to…until now.

Whatever it was, the most important thing was that she knew now that he—as well as the cat and hamster—could actually understand _exactly _what she was saying.

And yet, their words were just mumbo-jumbo to her. That was so unfair.

As she slipped under the cover of her blanket, Penny stole one last glance at them. The hamster was fast asleep on the edge of the bed, the cat was snuggling up to her side—she was glad the cat had warmed up to her—and most importantly, Bolt lay right next to her body, also asleep, providing her with warmth.

Right now, Penny felt extremely content, and so did the three animals sharing the bed with her. After an evening of drama that rivalled the amount of action on the 'Bolt' tv show, Penny had stated that she would go into details about…well, just about everything concerning the animals, some other day. Right now she was just happy that she had Bolt and her new pets to spend the night with. She was glad she understood them a little better now. Whatever details about them, whatever questions she had, could wait.

Time for sleep should be used for rest, after all.


	3. Recollection I

"Assumption is a dangerous thing" — Tan Solo

**A/N:** I thought it would be better to make my chapters more bite-sized, so I can update more frequently.

Here's something I've always wondered: Why did Mittens build the home for Bolt and expect him to stay in Vegas? What gave her even the slightest impression that he wanted to stay with her instead of going back to Penny? Well, I gave it a long thought, and finally thought of a possibility. This is it, and I hope you enjoy this 2-part chapter.

All facts stated about the Bellagio Hotel and the Bellagio fountains are accurate, including the song. It is one of the many songs played during the performance.

Thanks to bolt fan 21, Bane767 and mildirk for reviewing, and to Evarice for editing this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Recollection I**

__

There is definitely going to be something for me in Vegas.

That was what Mittens always thought halfway through America, after hearing stories and rumours from multiple pigeons—rumours of insanely large amounts of food to eat, rumours of beautiful lights and sounds, and overall a happy life. But from the way they described it, it was initially hard to believe. Eventually though, she did.

Mittens was dreaming, again. It was about the cross-country journey. Again. This time, it was about the time spent in Las Vegas—city of lights, dreams, and bankruptcy. It was worth remembering, to say the least. It was the catalyst, the pivotal point of their journey.

It was where she decided to abandon Bolt.

* * *

Mittens had made no mistake—she was enjoying herself thoroughly throughout the trip with Bolt and Rhino. They had already crossed the halfway mark of the journey, and it just kept getting better and better.

Bolt was considerate, kind, always thinking of others before himself. He would give help in any way possible, even to strangers he didn't know. Whether it was a child that needed cheering up or retrieval of an object, Bolt would stop and offer his assistance, sometimes to her slight annoyance, hating humans and all. It was the hero in him, she guessed. Some things just wouldn't change.

Bolt left no favour unpaid, either. Every lesson she taught him would be repaid in some form or another. He'd offer to find food—he was the one with the 'dog face', after all—and would reserve the best portions for Rhino and Mittens, leaving the small scraps for himself. They did try to persuade him to share the spoils fairly, but he was adamant. Yet another 'heroic' characteristic of him.

And the best part was when they were at a little outpost in a mountainous region halfway across the map—at least, that was what they figured. He had to go and surprise her by finding a ball of yarn. That was pure bliss for her. He even waited for her to finish playing around with it before he even considered moving on. When even one of them felt the slightest bit of fatigue, Bolt would order that they stop until they recovered, even offering to carry them on his back sometimes. Of course, Mittens never accepted that particular offer; she was too proud to do that.

With all these little actions and words, Mittens slowly began to change. Her sarcasm still remained, but towards them, it lost its stinging bite that usually accompanied it. And she didn't care. She was having so much fun, she forgot the actual reason why she was even accompanying them in the first place.

And that was why the problems only surfaced in Vegas. She happened to remember that certain important fact while they were riding on a truck carrying steel pipes heading into the Sin City.

* * *

The sky had turned a little grey, a clear indication that rain was imminent. The three animals were riding on a truck carrying three large cylindrical pipes held down only by a length of rope. It wasn't exactly the safest—or cleanest—vehicle, but it sufficed. Rhino was fast asleep in his ball, which left Mittens in charge of making sure it didn't roll off as the truck rattled and bounced along the rough gravel. That was the least of her worries at that moment, however.

_This is a big problem._

A large green sign that flashed past them at eighty miles per hour with the words printed in white: 'Las Vegas: 100 miles' was the real problem. It suddenly rekindled a worry that had formed in Mittens' mind since a few weeks back, but then forgotten. Until now.

_Is he still going to look for his person? That…Penny character?_

Normally, Mittens wouldn't have cared in the least if that happened. Her original plan—which she came up with back in Ohio—was simple and straightforward: Get Bolt to Hollywood, and maybe find some nice place on the streets to live—she heard the food was better, cleaner and easier to find there. Then, after she learned about Vegas, she thought of staying there instead. But no matter where she decided to go, the problem was the same.

She didn't want Bolt to leave. She wanted him to stay with her.

And yet, since Bolt was still travelling, it would mean that he was still going to find her. She had pushed aside the thought of what she was going to do countless times throughout the trip, telling herself that she would cross that bridge when she came to it.

Not anymore. They were only one state away from Hollywood. Time was running out.

_What am I going to do?_

"Mittens? Are you okay? You look dazed." Forgetting that Bolt was riding in the same pipe as her, she was thankful for inner monologue.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just wondering about…" A large signboard advertising the 'Bolt' tv show passed by, but Bolt couldn't see it from his line of sight. An idea flashed in her head.

"…Er…I was wondering about your tv show? You were in one, right?" She was unsure on how to approach the topic. This was the best she could think of.

"Um…yeah, I was. You want to know about it?" She realised she'd never asked him about his Hollywood life throughout the trip.

"Sure, why not? It'll give us something to do for the next hour, until we get to the next place on the waffle map."

Now Bolt was wary. He had never asked about Mittens' life ever since he met her, even though he had his growing suspicions. He never mentioned his studio life once throughout the entire trip either. That was because from the weeks he spent with her, he had a feeling that she didn't fancy humans much, although he could never figure out exactly why. He was much too polite to ask her. He imagined the last thing she'd want to hear was about how he was surrounded by humans all the time.

But now she was asking him about it.

His suspicions were further aroused, especially with her obvious look of uncertainty written all over her face. But he obliged her anyway. For the next half hour, he answered every question she had for him. He even explained a few episodes of the show in detail to her, telling of his heroisms and actions that saved Penny from great danger. Heat vision, the superbark, incredible strength, exploding helicopters and tanks—and of course, stupid Calico henchmen. She had to laugh at that.

"So how long have you been a superhero?"

"Um…well, I don't really know how long. As long as I can remember, I guess."

"I'm just wondering, how did you think it was all real?" She questioned. "I've seen a few documentaries on movie making, and it all looks so fake, with all the cameras and backdrops around, ya know?"

"They always kept me in a…trailer. I think that's what they called it once when I overheard. They never let me out of it until it was time to protect Penny." He became more emotional now. "I've never seen anything in the real world before, so I wouldn't know what's real and fake. I've never even seen the sun before I ended up in New York!" He looked visibly upset. It wasn't surprising—he had lost most of his early life to something as stupid as television. That was cruel.

And from what Mittens heard, it wasn't surprising that Bolt never questioned his life. It seemed that the directors and producers really went out of their way to ensure that he believed everything was real, and that everything he did was normal to him. That was probably to bring out a more natural performance from him, to add more realism to the show.

Hollywood was so evil.

Her disgust grew deeper as she thought of how all the actors and producers never gave consideration to what they were doing to a poor, innocent dog's mind. Making him do dangerous stunts, using him however they saw fit—they probably didn't even give a second thought about how he felt, just like her previous owners.

"That's…horrible. I'm sorry Bolt." She had never seen him this disquieted since he first figured out his powers weren't real.

"It's okay Mittens, I'm fine now. I just…" He took a deep breath before continuing. "I just never want to do all this again, you know? I think I've had enough of it." He softened a little. He then continued his long story, this time about how he infiltrated Calico's arctic hover-base.

Mittens wasn't listening, though. By this time, she had already tuned him out. What he said had suddenly got the gears turning in her head. His words opened up a new possibility for Mittens, one that whispered quietly in her heart, as if fearful that someone else would hear.

_He hated his life._

_That means that he may not want to go back anymore._

That was what she assumed, anyway. It was a small possibility, but it was there. And that gave her hope. Maybe somehow, she could get him to stay with her. She suddenly felt as if there was a glimmer of light shining down from the sky, even though right now it was even darker than before. The rain was definitely coming. As she thought that, Bolt gave a sudden yelp of surprise as a single raindrop landed perfectly on his nose.

"Mittens? What's this?"

"It's rain, Wags. Remember? The whole clouds and water thing?"

"Oh yeah," he replied as more droplets fell from the sky to earth, providing the trees and grass with much needed water. At first, it was just a few drops. But slowly, more fell, and eventually the mountain range was blanketed with a light shower.

"Go on, stick your head out," she willed him.

Bolt knew better than to question Mittens now—she knew about him way more than he did. He obeyed, and was once again greeted with another pleasant surprise. The rain felt cooling on his muzzle, and he murmured blissfully. No more words were said as the truck rumbled on, carrying three animals unknowingly on its back.

Mittens opened her eyes after a short spell of rest and stole a glance at Bolt. He was still enjoying the rain with his eyes closed, a smile creeping along his face. Bolt's fur had grown considerably dirtier during the trip, what with all the playing and lessons Mittens put him through. Burying, digging, he did it all. And without a proper bath that he always had in the studio, his immaculate white fur had darkened a little. The lightning bolt on his side, as Mittens had noticed, was already fading away. He didn't seem to mind though. _He's really different now._ Maybe somehow, he would choose to stay with her and all three of them could live happily together in Vegas, which was only a few more miles away.

With that thought in her mind, she laid her head down to rest on Rhino's ball once more, happy, and with newfound hope.

* * *

Las Vegas is known as the entertainment capital of the world, and is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. It is famous for the number of casino resorts and associated entertainment, which attracts millions of visitors a year. In one particular year alone, it managed to bring in thirty-seven million tourists.

Mittens wondered if those numbers ever included a cat, a dog, and a hamster.

They had finally entered the city, and were now riding on one of the city's most iconic roads: The Las Vegas Strip. From a hole in the top of the pipe, they took in the breath-taking view and the many sounds and smells that came along with it. Hotels, restaurants, and casinos, lighted in all their glory passed slowly by, as if the truck was slowing down just for them to view this montage of lights.

Eventually it came to a stop, and they bade it a final farewell as they stepped out of the streets and into a quieter alley, away from the hustle and bustle of walking tourists and vehicles. Mittens was a little uneasy about it—she heard there were some rough animals said to live in these parts—but she found comfort in the fact that she was not alone.

"So what should we do first?" Bolt asked excitedly, his ears standing straight up as proof.

"Let's go to that building over there! It's the most colourful!" He was pointing at one of the casinos on the Strip.

"Erm, Rhino, I don't think we can go in there." Mittens replied.

"Why not?"

"Well, we don't have any cash, and even if we did it'll probably be gone before we even make it halfway across the street."

"What about there?" Bolt was looking at a small group of people walking through a small doorway in the same alley they were in, but much further back. Some male, some female; they were laughing hysterically. One of them started throwing up.

_Lovely._

Mittens didn't answer, frowning. What they were doing, was probably better left unknown to them.

"Then what do you want to do?" A growling in Rhino's tiny stomach answered that question. Mittens let a small knowing grin cross her lips—this was the moment she was waiting for. She hoped the rumours were true.

Walking a little further in the alley, they came to a stop in front of a large dumpster. They were about to jump up onto it, but stopped when the door right next to it rattled. Hunkering down behind the door, they watched in silence as a man wearing an apron and a blue cap emerged with a small tray of uneaten fries and unceremoniously dumped them into the open dumpster, then disappeared back inside.

Taking that as the cue, they jumped up onto the dumpster, Bolt giving Rhino some assistance. What greeted them was amazing—burgers, hotdogs, cupcakes, doughnuts—and that was just only what they could see at the top layer.

"There…there's so much!" Rhino exclaimed.

"Yeah, it's—" Mittens stopped, staring straight ahead. Something had caught her eye. Some _things_ actually. She jumped back to ground, mouth agape, taking in the view. There were dumpsters as far as the eye could see, all similar to the one in front of them—filled to the brim with uneaten food.

"No…way…" Bolt stammered. They had never seen this much food in all the previous places they went through _combined_.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Rhino shouted. "Let's dig in!"

Half an hour later, they had almost literally bitten off more than they could chew. Bolt was guzzling down food which he said was a million times tastier than the bland food in the trailer, to the point where Mittens had to hold him back, just in case he choked on something. Rhino wasn't any much better—he was literally sitting in a half-eaten large ham.

"Bolt, Bolt! Stop eating so fast. You'll get yourself a headache in the morning. Or your stomach might explode."

"Oh come on, Mittens. You know you want to." He grinned, a little bit of jam smeared across his muzzle. "…Cheesecake?"

Mittens raised one eyebrow, giving him a look.

"It's honey cheesecake." Bolt said in a sing-song voice.

"Give that to me," she said, pouncing on it. All three of them laughed, enjoying the fellowship and food that they shared.

* * *

Halfway through dessert, a sudden hissing sound interrupted them. Music was suddenly playing.

"What's that?" Bolt asked, his ears perking up and twitching with each hiss and spurt. It sounded like water.

"I don't know. It sounds like it's coming from just outside," Mittens replied, still carrying a frosted doughnut in her mouth.

Walking through the alley and emerging out the other end, they saw a grand building. It was the Bellagio hotel, one of the most famous and iconic of the Strip. As per every fifteen minutes, the world-acclaimed Fountains of Bellagio located right in front of the hotel were putting on a performance for the world to see. Water was being jettisoned into the air by several of the fountain's 1,200 nozzles, creating a beautiful effect that made the water look as if it were dancing and flowing to the rhythm of the music playing overhead.

"Whoa." All three said in unison.

Dropping the food they carried carelessly onto the floor, all three of them were drawn close to the performance. They managed to find a seat right in front of the fountains. No one walking past seemed to notice or mind three animals gazing in absolute awe at the spectacle that unfolded. There was a beautiful song playing with an equally beautiful voice singing.

_"Love can touch us one time, and last for a lifetime…"_

"Mittens, it's beautiful." Bolt whispered.

"It is, Wags. It is," she replied.

That was the last thing they said for a while, until Bolt found his voice again.

"You know, I never really thanked you properly," he said, turning to her and staring her face to face.

"For what, Wags?"

"For everything, you know? You taught me things I never knew, and if it wasn't for you guiding me every step of the way, I don't know what I'd be doing right now. I wouldn't be looking at this, that's for sure." He motioned to the fountains.

"Wags, I should be thanking you instead. If it wasn't for you, I'd still be stuck on the New York streets conning pigeons out of their measly portions. Now there's so much food for me to eat." She smiled. "And it's all thanks to you dragging me across the country."

"Well, I'm glad I did now. You deserve so much more than you're treated. You're smart, funny, and you have a great sense of direction." If nothing else, she could tell he was sincere.

She felt a knot rise in her throat.

"Thanks, Bolt," she whispered.

"You're welcome."

Another moment of silence.

"I could stay here forever." He continued. "Wouldn't it be great, Mittens? All three of us, living together and enjoying life."

"Yeah, I guess it would be."

But the impact of his words didn't register until a good three seconds later. When it did, Mittens' eyes widened in stark realisation.

_He said that he wants to stay._

Suddenly, she felt that her little bit of hope was growing.

Mittens didn't say anything more after that. She was unable to. Bolt's sudden speech had taken her off guard. It had been a long time since she was this unguarded, shown clearly by her flustered expression. She was not good with words, and because of that, she didn't know really how to return his compliment. They all just continued watching the magnificent display in silence.

_He wants to stay. _The words kept replaying in her head. She felt like she was in heaven.

Glancing once more at the captivated canine sitting next to her, she couldn't help but smile. His tail was now wagging slightly as he looked at the fountain. She could tell at least, that he was happy. Noticing her gaze, he turned and smiled back at her.

And for the first time ever since travelling with him, deep inside her heart, there was a little flutter.

_"We'll stay, forever this way. You are safe in my heart, and my heart will go on and on…"_

As she felt that, as if just on cue, the fireworks began.

* * *

**A/N: **Happy New Year to all.


	4. Recollection II

**A/N:** If you are reading this story, I would like to urge you to review. I would like to know if you are enjoying my story so far or not, and it would give me inspiration to write better. It need not be a long review; a short one will do. If you do review, I will personally thank you at the start of each chapter, and I will do my best to update consistently and with the best quality I can give it.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Recollection II**

"I'm…sleepy," Mittens said, yawning. It didn't take long before she succumbed to the night.

Bolt noticed that she was curled up in front of the fountain; eyes shut and mouth hanging slightly open. The fireworks display had finished, leaving only some smoke trails in the black sky as evidence it ever happened. And even then by morning it would be gone.

"Mittens?" He called out. No response. He tried to stifle a laugh. It didn't work.

"Aw, she's asleep." He padded over as quietly as he could and picked her up by the nape of her neck. With a relative amount of difficulty, he placed her on his back. He thought of the irony of the situation—Mittens said she'd never let herself be carried by anyone else, him especially. He turned to the hamster sitting next to him.

"Come on Rhino, let's find a place to rest for tonight. Tomorrow's going to be a big day."

He had no idea.

* * *

"Hey, hey Bolt, wake up." A voice reverberated around his head. Slowly cracking open his eyes, Bolt saw the blurry form of Mittens standing in front of him. She had a look of excitement on her face.

"Hm?" That was all he could muster in the early morning. Apparently she had woken up before him.

"Come on! I got a surprise for ya." She started walking off.

"A surprise?" He looked around, yawning. "Where?"

"Not here. It's somewhere else. Come on! It's not that far away," she called over her shoulder.

"Okay…" He stood up and stretched, being mindful that Rhino was still fast asleep. 'What about Rhino?"

"Don't worry colonel; I'll be sure no man is left standing after I'm done with them…" Rhino flipped onto his back, still snoring away.

"Never mind. He's occupied. He'll see it after he wakes up."

After five minutes of walking through a series of twist and turns, Mittens requested him to close his eyes, just like he made her do back at the mountain outpost, when he surprised her with yarn.

_What did she do for me? _He thought. Every time Mittens asked him to do something, it always ended up with him enjoying it. Now she was doing something for him, and he was expecting something even greater.

"Alright, now no peeking!" She walked a little bit more forward before stopping. "Now, open 'em!" He did.

Standing in front of them, were two cardboard boxes and a small wooden barrel. They had been almost meticulously arranged and furnished with ornaments, probably from the dumpster: some pillows, a water dish, and even a pinwheel placed at the front of the makeshift house. From the number and their respective sizes, Bolt could only guess what they were for and what this 'surprise' was.

_Mittens? She did all this?_

Building all this was quite a feat for a small scrawny cat. Bolt figured it must have taken at least three hours to gather and arrange everything.

_But why? Why did she…?_

Mittens laughed in approval of her own work, cutting off the question in his head.

"Haha, bask in the glow, baby!"

"I…" _What am I supposed to say?_

"Just let me give you the grand tour, okay?" She padded over to the boxes, motioning to the smaller of the two cardboard boxes. "This one, this one's mine, and this one is all yours," she said, motioning to the larger one now.

"Well Mittens, I…I…" _She wants us to stay here? But I can't!_

"Oh, I found this really soft pillow thing for you, and get this! I found some Styrofoam, and I stuffed it inside—which I thought was both kinda creative and ironic, don't ya think?"

Bolt wasn't in the mood for irony. "Mittens, I don't think that—" She cut him off again.

"Check this out!" She kicked a stick holding up the opening to the box, causing it to fall. "Total privacy! And completely soundproof!"

Bolt wasn't even listening anymore. "Yeah well, I don't think that I—"

"Okay I lied, it's not soundproof. But you know, I—"

"Mittens! I can't stay here!"

A foreboding silence hung in the air. It might as well have been thunder.

Mittens finally reacted, slowly pushing her way out of the box. "What?"

"We're one waffle away from Penny." The last word struck a blow deep in Mittens' heart.

"You're still…going back to her?" _But…he said he wanted to stay!_

Although she didn't know this, that night, Bolt was just making small talk. He didn't really mean it the way she thought. She had only assumed, and as a result, misinterpreted the meaning of his words.

"Mittens, she's my person." There seemed to be finality to that statement.

Her initial shock was now giving way to anger. _I did all this for him, and he says he wants to go? Don't we mean anything to him? _

Now her blood was boiling. _Why would he pick her over us? She's a human! They're monsters! They ruined his life, and he still wants to go back to them? _She stepped forward briskly towards him and clamped her teeth down on his left ear. Forget the size disadvantage—she was too angry to care.

"Ow! Mittens, I—" She didn't give him any chance to speak. She yanked him hard by his ear for a few metres, him yelling all the way. Although he could have easily overpowered her to get free, he didn't. He was too kind to do that, so he just kept yelling in pain.

"Ow ow ow ow ow! Ear, ear!" Finally she let go, and Bolt shook his head, sighing exasperatedly, trying to shake off the pain that stung his left ear. Mittens jumped on top of a broken truck, as if to show she was in a position of power.

_What was that for? Why is she so angry? _Bolt wondered.

"Look at me Bolt, I'm real." Bolt was surprised to see a huge signboard advertising his show right behind her.

"Now how about this, huh? Is that real?" Her anger was unrestrained. "Does this look real to you? Or that? Is that real?" She was pointing to different parts of the signboard. "Or that?" she pointed at a picture of Bolt shooting laser beams from his eyes.

She walked right next to Penny's picture now. Bolt's eyes widened. _No…She can't be saying…!_

"How about that, Bolt? She's an actress—she's just pretending."

"Not Penny." Bolt's resolve was evident, but Mittens wasn't letting up.

"There is no Penny! She's fake!" _Just like your Hollywood life, and all the other humans in there!_

"No…you're wrong. She loves me!"

"No, Bolt! That's what they do, okay? They act like they love you, they act like they'll be there forever," her voice was rising to a furious crescendo. "And then one day they'll pack up all their stuff and move away, and take their love with them," She couldn't hold it back anymore. "And leave their declawed cat behind to fend for herself!"

Cognition at last.

A forgotten wound in Mittens' heart was torn wide open. She sighed, on the verge of breaking down.

"…They leave her…wondering, what she did wrong." The pain raked her heart like nothing she had ever felt before.

Bolt felt as if someone had slapped him in the face. His long lasting suspicions had been confirmed.

_That's…why. They abandoned her. _He was stunned to the point of immobilization. It was no wonder, then.

"I…I'm sorry Mittens but…" He glanced up at her. "Penny is different."

_Come on Mittens, come with me to Penny. She loves me, and she'll love you too. _Bolt thought. _Not all humans are like that._

Mittens felt like she was captaining a sinking ship whose crew was on the verge of mutiny. She was losing hope, fast.

_He doesn't want to stay._ Pain, anger and sadness struck her all at once. _He's not going to change his mind. _Emotion overflowed her mind; her logic and reasoning drowned out by her pain. She couldn't control herself.

"Then go."

"Mittens, I—" He never finished.

"Get out of here Bolt!" She turned her back on him. "I never should have taken pity on you."

"Aw, Mittens I—"

"Just get out here Bolt!"

Silence.

_Mittens…You…I…_ Bolt had never seen her this angry. Ever. He could almost feel the anger radiating from her very being.

Realisation set in. There was nothing left to be said; nothing left to be done. She wasn't changing her mind. Slowly, he turned and walked away.

_Mittens…I'm so sorry. _"You take care, Mittens." She turned her head away, not wanting to look at him.

And then he was gone.

* * *

Bolt wandered across the evening desert forlornly, his mind replaying the same scene in his head. Every time it did, he would feel a sting in his heart. Every few steps, he would stop and look back, just in case Mittens changed her mind. But with every look, he lost more hope that she was going to come round.

_No, Bolt. Don't look back. Don't look back._

He finally arrived at a small shack, with a truck parked out front. He jumped onto the back just as the engine started, not bothering whether it was heading straight to Hollywood or not. He wondered whether it he did the right thing by just leaving.

…_Yes. It was the right thing to do. Since the start, she didn't have any obligation to follow me._

_Besides, Mittens always said she wanted a nice place to stay. Now she has it. I should be happy for her. _

But deep inside his heart, he knew he wasn't going to be.

* * *

_What was I thinking?_

As the scene replayed in her head, Mittens felt a pang of guilt for her attitude and treatment towards Bolt. But it was no use—she had passed the point of no return, and there was no going back. She had banished him, and he had accepted it and walked away. Now, she was conflicted whether it was the right decision.

"He's the ungrateful one," she tried to tell herself._ "_I did so much for him, and he still chose her over us."

And that was when the voice of reason in her head resounded.

_Well, how much did he do for you?_

She gritted her teeth, knowing it was true. Bolt had done more for her than she did for him.

"He's going to get himself hurt." She was desperate now. "They're not going to take him back. I was just telling the truth."

_You know that's just a stereotype. You know Penny could very well love him._

"Well, but he didn't—"

_Didn't what? You told him to get lost before he could say anything!_

She had no rebuttal to that.

_Was I…too harsh on him?_

She didn't need to think hard about it; she already knew the answer.

_Yes…I was._

It was pointless to argue; it was clearly obvious that she was the one in the wrong. She had let her anger take over her and as a result, he left. And because of her pride, she wouldn't take back those words when he was still around. Now half a day had passed, and she imagined he was miles away from her by now.

_It's not like I can do anything about it now. He's gone._

She absent-mindedly collected some random bits of food onto a trash can lid for dinner But despite the enormous quantity and diverse range of food to eat, Mittens wasn't hungry. Just yesterday, everything looked, smelled and tasted great. Now, everything looked and smelled horrible to her.

With one paw, she pushed the plate of food away.

"Urgh…that meat lover's pizza is not loving me back at all…" She glanced over at whoever was talking. Rhino emerged from behind a dumpster—there were really a lot of them around—looking half-asleep.

Mittens was surprised; throughout the whole argument between her and Bolt, they had forgotten all about him. But then again, he wasn't the most memorable of people.

"Hey there, Rhino." She managed that much.

"Morning, cat." He yawned sleepily. "Where's…Bolt?" He asked the question she wanted to hear the least.

"He's…er…he's gone." She felt another knife through her heart.

"Bolt…left?" He looked as if he didn't believe it.

"Yeah, but he instructed me to tell you that…er…" She didn't want to tell him that he was gone because of her. "He had to face the green-eyed man alone."

Rhino contemplated the news, his brows furrowed. After a beat, he spun around and waddled away in his ball.

"Whoa!" Mittens called after him. "Where are you going?"

"To Bolt," he said, without breaking stride.

_He's still going back?_

"But, he doesn't…need us anymore."

Rhino finally stopped and turned around, scoffing as he did so.

"Oh, please, I've heard this a million times before. On the cold dark night before the battle when the steely fangs of evil are sharpened and poised to strike, the hero must go and face his greatest challenge alone." If Mittens wasn't so tired and upset she would have rolled her eyes and made some sort of snarky comment. Rhino continued.

"But if Bolt's taught me anything, it's that you never abandon a friend in a time of need." Those words struck a nerve.

_Bolt…my friend. He came back for me at the shelter. He didn't abandon me. _Guilt washed over her. _I just abandoned him._

She looked at Rhino, and realised he was walking away again.

"…When your teammate's in trouble, you go. Whether they ask or not, you go. Not knowing if you're coming back dead or alive…" He turned the corner.

Mittens couldn't resist this time. "He went the other way."

A heartbeat, and then he emerged from the corner and headed in the other direction, still continuing his heroic inspirational speech.

"You go! Knowing how deep the shrapnel's going to pierce your hide, you go!" And then his voice slowly faded away as he went further.

And then it was silence again for Mittens. For a hamster, his words carried great weight to them.

_What should I do now?_

It was a no-brainer, really.

_I have to go back. _She stirred.

_I have to go and apologise to him. I'll never be able to live with myself if I don't._

"Rhino, hold up!" She ran after him.

It took her about three whole minutes of brisk walking before she caught up to him, which made her wonder how something so small and fat could move so fast.

"Well, you took long enough," Rhino said.

Mittens said nothing, instead glancing back at the way they came. Las Vegas in the morning stood in stark contrast to Las Vegas at night. Everything looked and felt clearer—although that was not necessarily a good feeling. The illusion was gone; the dream of a happy life in Vegas was gradually fizzling away with every step she took. She shook her head quietly.

_There's nothing for me in Vegas anymore._

* * *

The sun had risen above the horizon, heralding the promise of a new day, with new hope. Orange light bathed the earth, warming all who lay under its embrace. Despite being fully exposed to the rays of warmth, Bolt felt cold. He had been up all night thinking about Mittens and Rhino, drifting in and out of sleep, not bothering to shelter himself from the rain when it did fall. One sleepless night had passed, and the dark circles could clearly be seen around his eyes.

He just couldn't let them go.

He thought of Rhino's boisterous attitude towards every single thing he did. His enthusiasm, although sometimes annoying, was contagious, and it always brightened up the mood in the group, which was a welcome gift, especially on the long roads of walking. He thought of Mittens, whose sarcasm and humour kept a smile on his face, and the invaluable lessons she taught him.

But now they were all gone.

The truck was slow in its journey: it made many stops along the way, stopping for hours at a time at one spot. At least the truck was headed in the right direction. But being alone, Bolt felt lonelier than he had ever felt in the studio trailer. He craved for someone to talk to, but not even a pigeon could be seen for miles at every stop. In the end, it was just him and painful thoughts. But now it was finally entering Hollywood, the end point. The final destination of their—no…his…journey.

_That's right. It's my journey, not theirs._

The truck finally slowed to a stop. Bolt took that as his cue and jumped off the back, taking a quick glance at the driver—who hadn't noticed him apparently—before walking over to a worn out wooden fence that separated him and the large city. A wave of nostalgia and hope came over him. Buildings stood like trees in a forest. He could almost hear a voice calling for him right there and then.

"Penny," he whispered.


	5. Storming The Front

**A/N: **Thanks to mildirk and Bane767 for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 5: Storming the front**

"Mittens, wake up!"

Mittens was snapped out of her reverie, groggily opening her eyes. The first thing she realised was that she was alone on the large bed. The second thing she realised was that Bolt was standing in front of her, looking as if he'd seen a ghost.

"…Bolt? Isn't it too early in the morning to disturb me?" She replied, casting him a sleepy glare.

"We don't have time for this! I need to get you out of here, or they're going to find us!"

"Who? Find what? Bolt, you're not making any sense here "

"Mittens, I don't have time to argue with you. I need you to follow me, _now_!" He looked even more panicked now.

"Look Bolt, if this is another one of those 'emergencies' that seem to always happen around the house, I'm telling you—whoa!" Bolt picked her up with his teeth and dashed out the bedroom door.

He leaped down the stairs, taking two to three at a time. He landed on the floor finally with a resounding thud, the cat held in his jaws dangling and bouncing around like some soft toy—much to her dismay.

"Bolt! Will you stop for a moment!" But her plea fell on deaf ears as he continued bounding around the house, until he got to the living room, where he jumped behind the sofa and skidded to a stop at last, finally releasing his grip on the irritated and discombobulated feline.

"Rhino, how's it looking?" Bolt asked the hamster, ignoring Mittens' painful moaning.

"Not good. They've completely cut off all of our possible escape routes. We're not getting out of here without a fight."

"Fight? Who? When? Where? What and why are we fighting exactly?" Mittens yelled at the top of her voice, not appreciating her questions being left unanswered.

"Are you okay, Mittens? I think yesterday's events may have left you in shock. Maybe that's why you can't remember anything."

"That can't be good," Rhino said. "If she can't help us, she'll be a liability to the team."

Mittens intervened at this point.

"Guys, I don't know what you're saying, but I'm perfectly fine. Now, can someone please tell me what's going on?"

They exchanged puzzled looks, but said nothing as Penny emerged from the kitchen, wearing a helmet and a gas mask. A red backpack was in her hands, and she stuffed some survival equipment into it from the coffee table in front of the couch: Some energy bars, a Swiss army knife, a first aid kit, a small but powerful flashlight…

"Why is she packing all that stuff? Where are we going?" Still no answer. It was very frustrating indeed.

She stuffed the last item into the pack—a small electronic device that looked like a small tv screen—before zipping it up and jumping behind the couch to join the three of them.

"Bolt, we have to go, now." Her voice sounded more robotic under the mask. "They're going to be in here any minute, and I want to avoid fighting all of them at once. Rhino, Mittens, you guys ready to go?"

"No!" Mittens shouted back. "I'm still sleepy, you're all acting funny, I have no idea what's going on…and…" she paused. "Wait…how do you know our names? You can't even understand us!"

"What are you talking about? I can understand you just fine." Mittens' jaw dropped.

"But…how?"

Her question was again unanswered, as the front door suddenly burst open. Three men entered, dressed in full body black suits, complete with a black helmet with a cat's eye insignia emblazoned above the visor. They looked strangely familiar.

"Wait…those look like Calico's henchmen…" Then, it hit her.

"Oh no…this isn't happening!" She shouted, forgetting that they could hear her. They spun around, machine guns drawn, ready to fire. She froze.

Bolt wasted no time. He jumped from behind the sofa and smashed his body straight into one of the henchmen, knocking him to the ground with such force he fainted. The other two turned their attention away from Mittens to the shepherd. He growled menacingly, baring his teeth. He lunged at another henchman, using his teeth to bring the man down. He yelled, trying to pull Bolt off, but the dog held fast. The third henchman aimed his gun, but was hesitant to fire, for fear a stray bullet might injure his friend.

In the end he stowed the gun and unlatched the claws hidden in his glove. They crackled with electricity. This would be more effective and less risky to use. He stood, watching patiently, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Penny gave a signal to Rhino, who nodded silently and rolled away. Mittens just watched the action unfold. Penny silently crept up behind the third man, and tapped him on his shoulder. The moment he turned, she slammed her wheel bar into his face. Being significantly smaller than the assailant, Penny lacked the strength to completely incapacitate him. The blow served its purpose though, and the man reeled back, stunned.

Penny pushed him aside and ran towards the second man, who was still grappling with Bolt. She pulled Bolt off of the man forcefully. Before the man on the ground could react, Penny struck him upside the head. His head struck the wall, instantly knocking him out.

The third man, having now recovered, made his move. Dashing forward, he delivered a kick to Penny's abdomen, sending her flying to the floor. He then spun around and grabbed a surprised Bolt with his glove. A few thousand volts of electricity coursed through the dog, and he let out a painful yelp, unable to free himself from the man's grip.

Mittens knew she couldn't wait anymore. This situation looked real enough to her, and Bolt was in danger. Questions could wait; she had to act now. She sprinted across the room and latched herself onto the man's face. Instinct caused him to release his grip on Bolt and try to remove the unwanted weight on his helmet. Mittens hung on for dear life—it was quite difficult without claws—as the man tried to yank her off. Bolt was still twitching on the ground, trying his best to recover.

Then, something happened.

As the man stumbled across the floor, Rhino appeared from the kitchen. He rolled himself to the middle of the room, positioning himself where the man was about to step. He slipped, and both Mittens and Rhino were flung across the room, conveniently into Penny's arms. The man fell backwards, and the base of his neck struck the edge of the coffee table, and he too was instantly out cold.

"Come on, let's go!" Penny shouted, wincing in pain due to the mark left by the kick on her stomach. Bolt was already up on his feet, and they all ran out the back door.

They burst out the back door as morning sunlight streamed into their eyes. When their eyes finally adjusted to the brightness, five henchmen could be seen lying on the ground, motionless.

"Whoa, what happened to them?" Mittens asked, shocked.

"Sleeping on the job, it seems," Rhino replied.

A loud beep ended the conversation right then. Penny whipped out her phone and snapped it open, staring intently at the incoming message that had been sent to her. After a beat, she snapped it back shut and slipped it into her pocket.

"Transport's coming," she said. "They're going to bring us to the nearby shelter, codenamed "Noble base". We'll be camping there until we're ready to move out again."

"You know, I think I've given up trying to understand what's going on," Mittens said, sighing as she did so.

"That's probably for the best," Penny replied. "I'll explain everything later, but for now we need your full cooperation. Do you at least know what we're doing?"

"Trying to save your father from the fiendish Dr. Calico with Bolt the super dog that has superpowers?" She turned to said canine. "You do have superpowers, right?" He nodded.

"Well, that's certainly detailed." Penny said, impressed. "I'm glad you managed to remember that much."

"We were so worried that you weren't going to make it." Bolt whined. "I'm just glad you're alright. You know, it's all my fault I let them get you. I'm so sorry Mittens."

She raised a paw to stop him.

"I think you can explain the whole story to me later. I probably won't understand anything right now anyway." Bolt nodded. His ears pricked up as a rumbling sound emanated from far away. They glanced into the distance as a black speck could be seen approaching fast.

As the sound got louder, the speck grew bigger. They could make it out as a jeep, but it sure didn't look like one. It had been heavily customised with various pieces of equipment, and it looked more like some high tech reconnaissance vehicle. It even had thick bulletproof metal protecting it completely. If you didn't know better, you'd say it was some tank-car hybrid. It skidded to a halt next to them, and that was when they noticed words spray-painted across the back of the jeep. It read: Go on, just TRY and shoot me.

The driver stepped out of the vehicle. He was a clean-cut, well-built young man dressed in full military fatigues. He carried himself with an air of rigidness as he approached them.

"And you are?" His voice was as rigid as his stance.

"Penny said nothing, instead removing her gas mask, smiling.

"Uncle R.C, have you really forgotten what I look like?" The man's icy exterior cracked almost instantly as his eyes widened, and his face melted into a warm and comforting smile.

"Penny! You…you're so big!" His tone of voice suddenly did a complete change. He ran up and embraced her, playfully ruffling her hair. They both laughed, enjoying each other's presence.

Mittens turned to Bolt, who answered her question before she even asked it.

"His name is Romann Coriander. He's the assistant to Penny's father, and he's here to help us locate him. For security purposes, he has changed his name, but his initials remained the same, so he wouldn't forget."

"That's weird," Romann said, bending down to Mittens' level. "I thought you already knew who I am, Mittens."

"Wait, how can you understand…never mind, forget it," Mittens said, sighing again.

"She just lost her memory after we sprung her from Calico," Bolt explained. "She doesn't really know what's happening right now."

"I see." He nodded. "Well then, we should—"

A loud siren erupted from the jeep, cutting off his question—it was starting to become common today. Romann sprinted over to the controls and silenced the wailing siren with the push of a button. He then did some quick finger work, pressing buttons and examining the screen, which flashed a multitude of colours. From the look on his face, it was clearly not good news.

"We've got incoming, and it's big. We'll talk later about this. For now you all had better get in, quick." They nodded, Mittens slightly alarmed at the fact that something big was approaching.

Climbing aboard the back, they strapped themselves in just as the engine roared in ignition. Within seconds they were tearing down the dirt path, the wheels having no problem coping with the rough terrain. Over the hum of the engine, Mittens turned to Bolt, trying to clear the air about some things.

"So, tell me again what kind of powers you have?"

"Well, there's heat vision, super strength, superbark, invulnerability…"

"Invulnerability? You looked pretty vulnerable when that goon zapped ya."

"That's because I'm tired. I spent most of my energy yesterday destroying some of Calico's machinery. I still haven't fully recovered yet. Invulnerability and the superbark require the most energy to execute, so I try to use them sparingly."

"Oh boy, they're here." Everybody turned to Romann. He was frantically trying to flip a switch under the board.

"They're here, and I can't even get the defence system online!" He yelled.

"What defence system?" Penny asked.

"The one I installed yesterday."

"Okay, we're doomed."

A different humming could be heard now, and they turned around simultaneously. At first it was just one, but with every second, another one appeared, and then another, until there were eight motorcycles racing towards them at breakneck speed.

"Penny!" Romann shouted. "Can you fire a rifle?"

"No!" She shouted back.

"Can you drive?"

"Do you _want_ me to drive?"

He paused. "Okay, we're doomed."

The leading three motorcycles signalled for the remaining five to pull back, allowing the three of them to have more space. It was terrifying to the average person—they moved robotically, like a well-trained contingent moving in for the kill. The suits and helmets further accentuated that image.

Suddenly, the leading motorcycle accelerated even further up, a compartment opening at the front revealing a small chain gun. With a roar, it opened fire on the jeep. There was a loud shrieking of metal on metal as the bullets grazed the bumper.

Suddenly, Mittens did not find the words on the back of the jeep to be amusing in the slightest.

Fortunately for them though, the tyres were well protected. Unfortunately for them, the tyres weren't designed to be bulletproof, so a single precise bullet would destroy everything.

"How do we stop them?" Penny shouted, instinctively ducking as off-target bullets peppered the back of the jeep. Thankfully the back's armour was strong enough to withstand the multitude of bullets, which did little more than dent the metal.

"Bolt! Bolt can stop them! You told me he has powers, right? Well, use them!" Romann yelled, trying to swerve to avoid the bullets as much as possible.

"I can't! He's tired, and if he pushes it any further, he'll be out for who knows how long."

"Well if you don't, we'll all be out, and I can tell you we'll be out for a long time!"

Penny winced. "But…" She stopped as Bolt placed a paw on her lap. His eyes said it all.

She nodded slowly, before turning to Romann.

"Can you control the back door from here?"

"Yeah, why?"

"On my mark, I want you to open it fully."

"Fully? We'll be easy shots for them like that!"

"Don't worry, they won't. They want me alive. They won't shoot me." Romann was about to protest, but when he saw the resolve in Penny's eyes, he knew this was a battle he couldn't win.

"Alright, on your mark." Penny nodded.

Bolt took a step forward and readied his super bark stance. This was going to be completely different, performing it on a moving vehicle. It could be potentially dangerous to the people inside. But he had too little energy to take them down one by one with his heat vision, so he had to make this one shot count. If it didn't work, it would be over.

"Three…" Everybody huddled closer to the front.

"Two…" They covered their ears.

"One…" Romann's finger hovered over the switch.

"Now!" He flipped it. The moment the door swung open, Bolt released his superbark.

A concentrated pulse of sound waves erupted from Bolt's mouth in one simple bark. Although it was not fully powered, the superbark was still a force to be reckoned with. In fact, it was still pure devastation. Everybody—including the jeep—literally shook in fear at the raw power that had been unleashed. Nobody even bothered to look and see if the attack had hit its target. The answer was clear.

"Argh! Power…Overwhelming!" Romann lost control of the jeep as the force of the superbark propelled it forward. The rear wheels were actually lifted off the ground for a good few seconds before finally hitting ground again. When they did, the whole vehicle bounced wildly, trying in vain to stabilise itself.

Romann slammed on the brakes, but the only thing that accomplished was to cause the whole vehicle to tip over. It hung in the air, as if suspended by some unknown force. Then, gravity finally decided to reassert itself, and the jeep collapsed on its side, defeated, kicking up a cloud of dirt and dust.

Penny coughed, trying to clear the dirt that now swirled around her. Her vision was obscured by the swirling brown dust around her. When it finally settled, she scanned her surroundings, and the first thing she saw was Bolt, lying inches away in front of her, motionless. Mittens was knocked out next to him, while Romann and Rhino were nowhere to be seen.

"Bolt!" She screamed, scrambling next to him and cradling him in her arms. Slowly, his eyes opened, and he gave her a tired whine.

"Oh Bolt, I'm glad you're alright." She hugged him, and then turned to Mittens, who also appeared to be fine, other than passing out from the shock.

Romann called from inside the wreckage while trying to pull himself out slowly.

"Hey, is everybody oka—argh!" He let out an ear-piercing yell as his body convulsed uncontrollably. Within seconds, he was out cold.

"Uncle R.C!" Penny cried out. But it was no use—he was not responding.

Then, like a pack of predators revealing themselves to the prey before the attacking strike, three figures emerged on top of the smoking overturned jeep. They were Calico's henchmen. Bolt growled, recognising them to be three of the eight motorcycles. Somehow, they had circled around them, out of range of the superbark.

"No!" Penny shouted, as they marched over and forcefully pulled her away from Bolt, cuffing her and tying down her dog, who was too weak to resist.

"Your orders, sir?" One of them said into a microphone attached to his helmet. The reply was barely audible, but Penny heard it anyway.

"_Take the girl and the dog, and kill the rest."_ Her eyes widened in stark horror and realisation.

"No! You can't!" Penny screamed, struggling wildly to break herself free from her captor. But she was no match for his strength.

The two remaining men raised their rifles which were pointed at Mittens and Romann respectively. But a second before their fingers pulled the trigger, the top of the jeep blew off, as if someone had ejected it forcefully. And since the jeep had been overturned, the roof was ejected in the direction of the two henchmen about to shoot the unconscious cat and human.

"What the—" That was all they said before they had a roof over their heads—forgive the pun.

The third henchman reeled, stunned at the sudden unexpected attack. Making sure that both the girl and the dog were securely tied up, he raised his gun and slowly inched towards the jeep, turning off the safety. There was no visible movement inside the vehicle, but he couldn't be sure. He gripped the handles at the back of the jeep, ready to pull it open and shoot anyone inside…

…But that was when something completely unexpected happened.

Before the man could pull it open himself, the door swung open outwards forcefully, as if someone from the inside had kicked it open. His weight was no match for the heavy metal door, and he was flung backwards, the gun in his hands sent clattering across the dusty floor. He picked himself up almost immediately though, and when he saw a flurry of movement inside the vehicle, near the driver's seat, he knew he had to act at once.

His claw crackled as he ran towards the vehicle. There was someone sitting at the controls, but he couldn't make that person out. The chair turned. There was a shadowy figure sitting on it.

_You're dead!_

He lunged at the chair. But before he could get there, a rectangular black box extended from the side of the jeep, right in front of his face. The man tried to stop, but it was too late. Inertia had taken its toll, and he slammed face-first into it. His body did a complete revolution before landing hard on the metallic interior.

Penny and Bolt were both silent. They had heard noises coming from inside the jeep, and they feared the worst. But when Rhino came walking out like someone returning from a victorious battle, they knew it was going to be all right.

"Rhino! But how…how did you…?"

"Defence mechanism," he replied flatly. "He just didn't turn on the power." Penny did a mental head slap.

Rhino passed her the keys to her cuffs from the unconscious henchman. He freed herself before untying Bolt.

"Rhino, you did it!" Bolt cheered. "You're a hero! You saved us!"

"I'm a hero?" It dawned on him. "Oh yeah, I am a hero! Fully awesome!"

"Yeah, you are a hero, Rhino. You are." Penny said proudly.

_Hero…_

_Hero…_

_Hero…_

_

* * *

_

And then, the voices were silenced. Rhino opened his eyes, and he was in Penny's bed, sitting beside them. They were all asleep, and very peacefully too.

_What…? It was all just a dream…? _Rhino felt a little disappointed at that fact. He felt scammed.

But little did he know that particular dream would be of utmost importance in the coming weeks.

He looked over at Penny and Bolt. They looked completely content living in this laid-back lifestyle._ Bolt hasn't been using his powers lately…_he thought.

Of course, he could perfectly understand why Bolt wouldn't want to use his powers. They had rescued Penny, and now they were lying low, to prevent Calico from finding them. Bolt had assured him that Penny's father was safe, and thus a simple life would be perfect for them right now.

Still, Rhino wished that they could go back to the action-filled life, with all its awesomeness and glory. He'd never even seen Bolt use one of his more renowned powers throughout the entire cross country trip, and he was so hoping to witness one up close. The closest he got was at the studio, where he heard Bolt use his superbark. But still, that wasn't enough to satisfy him. Even now, he was just reduced to watching the magic box to catch Bolt in action.

As he started to fall asleep again, he dreamed of being a true hero. Someone who could save other people from danger; someone who people would turn to in their time of need. Someone…like Bolt.

Fully awesome.

* * *

A/N: Mittens isn't the only one who can dream. :)


	6. Recollection III

**A/N:** Here in Singapore, we celebrate Chinese New Year. This is my chapter for this occasion. 恭禧发财 to all.

Thanks to mildirk, Bane767 and () -(nice name) for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 6: Recollection III**

While Mittens was dreaming about the events during the cross-country trip, Rhino was having his little fantasy about being a hero. At the same time, strangely enough, Bolt and Penny were having the exact same dream. Perhaps it was because they went through a similar experience through the fire, or maybe it was because they were very closely bonded to begin with, but somehow, they dreamt the exact same thing.

It was after the grand incineration of the studio.

* * *

_That was…right after the fire…_

Penny's mind was foggy. The world was rushing by in bits and pieces as a cacophony of sounds blared through her ears. Sirens, screaming, shouting, chattering—all being pumped into her eardrums. She couldn't move—not that she felt like it anyway—and she couldn't see. She felt like her lungs were on fire, although the pain was slowly starting to subside. She gulped down the fresh air being supplied to her gratefully. With every breath, a little more of the fog cleared, and the questions that formed in her head were slowly answered. Suddenly, it all came rushing back. The filming. The fire. Bolt.

_Bolt! Is he safe? Is he alright?_

Coughing, she cracked open her eyes barely, unaccustomed to the bright light pouring into her retina. That was when she saw him. A man dressed in yellow was carrying him. He appeared unconscious, and Penny was starting to fear the worst. But as if he sensed her fears, his limp tail wagged slowly, a steadfast indication that he was alright.

"Bolt…" she whispered. Words could not describe her immense relief at seeing him safe.

"Sweetie!" Her mom pushed through a crowd of people, desperate to see her daughter safe. "You're okay! You gotta be okay…you're going to be just fine…"

"She's stable, but we're going to take her to the hospital, just to be safe." Nobody noticed Mittens or Rhino silently stowing away underneath the stretcher.

As the firemen loaded her into the ambulance, Penny vaguely recalled her agent getting in with her mom. She vaguely recalled him being thrown out by her mom, and she vaguely recalled both of them grinning all the way to the hospital.

They had sent Bolt to the vet for a check-up to ensure he was alright, and now it was 9 at night. Moonlight flitted into the room through the windows in Penny's ward, which was a first class ward, the most expensive and well-equipped class of ward in the hospital. It was fully carpeted, and well furnished. The television was a flat screen LCD that sat above a mahogany table, which was the standing place of a crystal vase, with some strange flowers Penny did not recognise. The entire room looked more like a suite than a hospital room. It was her mom that insisted she get good treatment, although Penny thought this was going a little far.

The doctors had declared her to be fine, although they insisted that she spend the night there to recuperate as she was still rather weak from the smoke asphyxiation. Of course, there was a significant problem with that arrangement.

"What do you mean I can't see him?" Penny demanded.

"I'm sorry, but hospital rules don't allow animals to be brought in." came the reply from the presiding nurse.

"But he could be looking for me! Do you know I lost him for weeks because someone wouldn't let me see him?" Penny gave her a sharp glare. The nurse blanched a little.

"I truly am sorry, but rules are rules." As she turned to go, there was a sudden flurry of excitement outside the room. Penny leaned forward in her bed, trying to get a view out of the door.

"How the hell did a cat get to the fifth floor of a hospital?" A man yelled from outside.

"Just shut up and find it!" Another barked back.

The nurse slowly closed the door.

"So what happened to the 'no animals' rule?" Penny asked, smirking.

"Just went out the window." They both laughed. "I guess it wouldn't hurt. I'll see if I can sneak him in here. By the way, he's Bolt right? _The_ Bolt? From the tv show?"

"Yeah," Penny replied. _But not anymore, I guess._

The nurse smiled. "I thought so. My kids love to watch it. How about this: I'll get him in here if you can give me three signed pictures for my children."

It was a generous offer. "Sure."

"Thanks." she left the room.

Although this was unknown to Penny, somewhere else on the fifth floor of the hospital, some other people were blatantly breaking the hospital rules.

"It looks like…we're not very welcome here," Rhino stated, gasping for breath.

"Gee, ya think?" Mittens snapped back, also out of breath. They had somehow narrowly avoided being caught by hospital staff, and were now hiding in a storage closet that was conveniently left ajar.

"We lost Bolt. I have no idea where he is. I think I heard something like, they were going to bring him to the vet or something."

"How is it that we lost sight of Bolt when he was right on top of us?" Mittens exclaimed. Rhino shrugged.

"I don't know. But there's no time to worry about that. We have to find Bolt quickly! He might need some backup just in case the green-eyed man launches a counterattack."

Mittens stared in disbelief. Somehow, Rhino had held firm to his belief that Bolt had superpowers _throughout _the entire cross-country trip, even though it was painfully obvious he didn't.

_Did we never explain to him that Bolt's life was a lie? _Mittens felt a little guilty of that. She and Bolt were prone to ignoring him and his antics many times over during their travels. She made a mental note that after all the dust had settled, she would sit him down and explain to him—clearly—the truth. But for now, they had to focus on finding Bolt.

"You're right, Rhino. We need to find Bolt soon. Come on, let's—" she stopped suddenly, her ears twitching. Someone was coming!

"Rhino, Hide!" She whispered as footsteps approached. But before they could conceal themselves, someone had pushed opened the door. It was a young man with thin spiked blond hair. He was an orderly, and he was carrying a large cardboard box with both of his hands. He almost dropped it when he saw them.

"What the heck?" He blurted.

Mittens immediately bolted for the door, trying to slip under his legs. Unfortunately for her, his legs had buckled at the sight of her running towards him and he lost his grip on the box. It tumbled and crashed onto the ground, blocking her exit, while also sending various pieces of hospital equipment flying and clattering across the room.

Rhino ducked as a scalpel sailed past his head. There were other pieces of equipment: A stethoscope, some syringes, empty vials and bottles—the standard stuff you would expect to find in a hospital. And they were all tumbling around, most of them breaking on impact. The loud crunch of glass was clear to all of them.

Mittens had just narrowly avoided the falling box and the flying shrapnel as it crashed onto the hard linoleum floor. The man had also fallen with the box and landed in front of her. That was when she got a good look at him. He had blue eyes that seemed to radiate bewilderment, while his skin was smooth, like that of a baby. He had a white frock with a nametag clipped on his breast pocket. It read: Lexus Quirk. He was apparently an orderly here in the hospital. He did not look amused.

"Why you little—" He reached out and grabbed Mittens with his hands. She struggled, but he gripped her tightly. She couldn't breathe. She bit him in the wrist, causing him to wince, but otherwise still hold fast. He looked for a way to contain the mangy cat, and he decided that the now half-empty box filled with glass shards and fragments would suffice.

But as he raised his arms to throw her in, he felt a sharper, more distinct pain in his wrist. He yelled and twisted his arms, only to see that the hamster had sunk his teeth into his fleshy wrist. He only loosened his grip for a moment, but it was enough for Mittens to squirm free and dash out of the room, Rhino following close behind.

Orderly Lexus didn't spend too much time in shock or in pain. He scrambled to his feet and dashed after the animals that had somehow snuck into the California General Hospital. _So much for our hospital's airtight security, _he thought. It had been infiltrated by people with no form of stealth technology whatsoever.

Mittens had only run a few metres before the angry shouts of the orderly pierced the air. She wondered why no patients were coming out of their rooms to investigate the ruckus. It would have made a nice distraction. Rhino had finally caught up, but he was having difficulty running without his ball.

She flashed him a silent thank you for the assist before focusing on the corridor ahead. This was supposed to be a simple hospital visit, but somehow it had degenerated into a senseless game of cat and mouse. Being the mouse in this case, she did not find the irony amusing.

* * *

Nurse Adrian Anderson had seen many undesirable things as a nurse, but she had to take it all in as she worked day by day. The pay was peanuts compared to a doctor's salary, but this was all she could do to earn money. Having three children to raise by herself was not easy, but she believed that she could do it. The only problem was that she couldn't earn enough to meet all their needs, and that brought her great sadness.

But today, she hoped that she could bring a smile onto their faces with their favourite hero's autograph.

The vet's office was conveniently located next to the hospital, so walking was no problem for her. She had donned a simple cap to shield her from a light drizzle as she moved across the cool night. It was only when she stood at the front door that the thought occurred to her:

_How am I supposed to pull this off?_

If her boss caught her breaking the rules for some autograph, she could probably kiss her job goodbye. But then again, a cat _did _get that far in, and besides, visiting hours were almost over at the hospital, so if she moved quietly enough, she could bring him in through the staff elevator at the back of the hospital without anyone noticing.

She entered, her confidence rising. The man at the counter, a small portly man with thick black hair, raised his head and broke into a smile.

"Miss Anderson! What brings you here?"

"Just checking on one of your patients, Matt. I think you might know him. You know the white shepherd, Bolt?"

"Ahh…a real fine specimen, that one." He raised his head high, like a proud father talking about his new-born son. "You know, it's extremely rare to see one with such a smooth pure white coat. He's really been well cared for."

"That's nice, Matt," she said, not really caring about his words. She had nothing personal against him, but if you gave him even the slightest look of interest, he'd blab on and on about random things until you wished you had something to impale him with. She had made that mistake once. It never happened again.

"Aw, you don't have to be so mean, Adrian. Say, your shift ends in an hour, right? How about we go grab some supper later?"

Adrian knew his words weren't some attempt at a flirtatious come-on—he was just trying to be nice. He tried to be nice to everyone he met, but somehow, people just wouldn't want to associate themselves with him. But that was most likely due to his flamboyant personality. It was quite pitiful, really.

"Matt, I'll go out with you for supper if you can do me a favour." She hoped she wasn't going to regret this.

He brightened tenfold after those words. "Sure! What is it?"

"I need you to help me bring Bolt into the hospital. Specifically, room 74 on level 5."

"Wait, are you kidding? You want me to sneak an animal into a human hospital? Do you know what would happen if we're caught?"

"I do. But just do me a favour, okay? You want supper, don't you?"

Matt threw up his hands in defeat. "Alright, alright, just don't blame me if they give you the pink slip. How're you planning on not getting caught, anyway?" Adrian smiled.

"You'll see." With that, she strode past him and into the adjacent room where Bolt was being held.

Bolt was fast asleep. His body had taken quite a beating from the smoke in the fire. He had a few cuts on his legs as proof. He had used up the last of his strength to call out for help in his last moments of consciousness, but he still struggled with full force when they tried to separate him from Penny. They had to sedate him—with permission from Penny—to get him to the vet and now he was cleaned up, bandaged nicely and fast asleep on a bed.

That is, until Adrian entered the room.

Bolt stirred, his eyes opening and focusing on the new visitor. The sedative they had administered had worn off and he was now awake, albeit still very groggy and disoriented.

"Hey boy," Adrian walked up slowly so as not to intimidate him. "You want to see Penny, don't ya?" Bolt's tail wagged back and forth, as he glanced up at the mysterious blurry woman who had offered to take him to his person.

"Alright then, let's do this."

* * *

"Why…won't…he…give up!" Rhino grunted, trying his best to keep pace with Mittens.

"Rhino! Are you okay?" Mittens called from in front.

"I'm…fine…don't worry about…" He trailed off, collapsing onto the ground.

"Rhino!" She stopped mid-stride and doubled back to him. He was panting, gasping for oxygen to fill his lungs, which wasn't fast enough to make up for the oxygen debt he incurred. His eyes were glassy and his body was trembling.

The orderly was in sight and getting closer. Mittens didn't wait for him to get close. She threw the defeated hamster on her back and sprinted off again.

"Hang on!"

They cut through corridors and walkways randomly until Mittens herself was gasping and feeling like collapsing herself. Rhino was too tired to say anything—being fat had its disadvantages. At least, there were no other people on the same floor, other than that enraged orderly. Mittens was thankful for that.

"Can't…breathe…" Rhino gasped, trying his hardest to hold on to Mittens. She was worried about him, but she had a bigger issue to address.

But no matter how many turns and twist she made, the orderly managed to keep pace. The shouts were increasing in volume now. Mittens could understand why. They had broken perhaps a few thousand dollars' worth of equipment, and they had left a nasty mark on his wrist. Mittens sensed it was the latter that angered him more.

As a familiar corridor zoomed past them, Mittens suddenly realised she was running out of places to run. She didn't know the layout of the hospital, while he did. He had the advantage in this chase.

Mittens saw another corridor leading down a different way. Thinking she could trick him into going down the wrong path, she made a sharp turn into it, Rhino almost falling off there. She ran a little more, and then stopped. With horror, she realised going down this path was a mistake. Apart from a few rooms, the hallway ended with a staff elevator, which could be activated only with a key card.

It was a dead end.

Orderly Lexus was running at full speed, but he hardly broke a sweat as he chased down the black cat that had somehow infiltrated the California General Hospital. His boss had been very clear in his instructions: Find the darn animals, and get them the heck out of the hospital. They had managed to give him the slip the first time, but not now.

He smiled inwardly as he saw the cat turn the corner into a corridor. He knew it was a dead end, as it led only to the staff elevator. And with no way to access it, they were trapped. He kept himself low to the ground as he moved, just in case they tried to pull a fast one out of the corridor.

But when he turned the corner, he was utterly shocked. The hallway was clean. Nobody in sight. The only movement came from a door at the end of the hallway.

_There you are!_

He ran swiftly, hands clenched in the thought of what was to come. He wondered how a bunch of animals could open up a supposedly locked door. The room in question they had just run into happened to be a small unused ward. They were planning to convert it into a lounge for doctors to rest in their free time. But for now, it was still empty. And there were no places to hide or run. They had brought him far, but now the jig was up. It was over.

Still running at full speed, he pushed the door open ever so slightly as he slipped in. He then immediately slammed the door behind him, to prevent any sort of escape. He actually half-expected the cat to try and attack him in a last ditch effort to try and escape, but there was no such action. The room was quiet and dark; there were no sounds of movement at all. The moonlight filtering into the room did little to illuminate the darkness.

_Where are you…?_

His nerves tingling, he reached for the light switch. He flipped it on. The lights flickered on slowly as they were unused for a long time, before finally lighting up full force. He didn't know what to expect, but he certainly didn't expect this.

There was nothing. Nothing at all. The room was barren. In a final act of fury, he let out a guttural roar that reverberated around the fifth floor of the hospital.

* * *

"What was that?" Penny asked. She had been chatting with Adrian and Matt about her life while Bolt sat on her lap contently, when they heard a furious yell come from the next room.

"Sounds like a dying horse." Matt said.

"How would you know that?"

"I'm a vet. I know these things."

Adrian stood up and walked to the door. Opening it a crack, she could see Lexus, holding his head in his hands and mumbling to himself.

"Lexus? Were you the one screaming?" He looked up, his expression still in disbelief.

"Adrian, I think I'm going mad. I've been chasing a darn cat the whole freaking night and I can't even get close to it!"

"What are you talking about? A cat? In a hospital? You sure you're not just nuts?"

"I'm not!" He yelled. "There's this black cat…and it's got a hamster riding on top of it! They bit me, see?" He waved his wrist in front of her face. Adrian was still sceptical.

"Okay, I'm pretty sure you're hallucinating."

"I most certainly am not! I saw it go into the next room, and then…and then…they disappeared into thin air!" He looked hysterical.

"Lex, I think you're just exhausted. Why don't you go home, get some sleep, and come back tomorrow, m'kay?"

"But I—"

"Look, the last thing this hospital needs is a crazy man running across the hallways. Besides, your screaming is disturbing the patients." She pointed at Penny.

Lexus said nothing. He buried his head in his hands and walked off like a sulking child, still mumbling to himself. Adrian gave him a look of contempt and shook her head in pity as she shut the door again.

"So what was it?" Matt asked.

"A dying horse." Adrian replied flatly, sitting down beside the bed. "Never mind about him. I'm more concerned about _these _guys over here." She said, pointing at Mittens and Rhino, who had just emerged from under the bed.

"Ah!" Penny shouted, surprised. "Where did _they_ come from?"

"Question of the day, no doubt," Adrian replied.

"M-Mittens? Rhino?" Bolt gaped, jumping off the bed to meet them. "What…what are you guys doing here?"

"Funny," Mittens said, panting. "I thought I already answered a similar question today, Wags."

"But how did you get in here?"

"Long story, Bolt."

Nobody but Adrian noticed that just a minute ago, Mittens and Rhino had slipped quietly into Penny's room, prompting Adrian to stand up and shut the door to the room, not telling anyone what she had seen, in order to maintain silence. If they had made any reaction or sound, Lexus would have run in and found Bolt as well, which would have been more than just a little awkward for them. So, Adrian had hoped for the best and silently closed the door.

Lexus, not expecting the animals to be able to enter a room with a closed door, moved to the furthest room, which thankfully was opened in order for the contractors to view it, where of course, he found nothing.

"How did they get in here?" Matt demanded.

"I don't know. But if anybody finds out about this, we're dead." Adrian replied.

"I'd better bring them down to the shelter. It's just down the road." But as he approached them, Bolt jumped in front, giving a warning growl to Matt. He backed off.

"Okay, maybe not."

"It seems like Bolt knows them." Penny said, intrigued.

"Maybe they got worried about their friend and decided to check on him?" Matt offered. They laughed, but they didn't know it was closer than they thought.

"The both of you…came all the way here to find me?" Bolt asked.

"Repaying the favour, Bolt, that's all." Mittens replied, smiling. Bolt grinned back.

"Thanks, guys."

"Whoa! It's the legendary Penny! I'm actually meeting Penny! This is AWESOME!" Rhino jumped and down excitedly, on the floor, as if his fatigue just disappeared. Penny picked him up gently. That sent him into euphoria.

"Wow, you're one really excited fur ball, aren't you?" Rhino jumped ecstatically in her hands, drawing the attention of the other two to him.

"I think that rodent's on LSD." Matt commented. Adrian slapped him.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"You feeling okay, Bolt?" Mittens asked, sitting on the carpeted floor. Her breathing rate had stabilized a little.

"Better, I guess. The bandages and medicine make me feel funny, though."

"Well, you _did _run into a burning building. It's not like you could escape without being nicked here and there."

"But I lived, and Penny's safe. That's the most important, right?"

"I guess so. I'm just glad you're alright, Wags."

There was a strange awkward silence between them.

"Um…Bolt?"

"Yes, Mittens?" She shuffled uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have shouted at you back in Vegas. I was just…angry. I didn't mean it. I…" She felt a lump in her throat and a stab of guilt in her heart.

Bolt thought a long time, saying nothing, contemplating her words, as if deciding her fate.

Finally, he spoke.

"Well, if that's the case, there's a way you can make it up to me."

"What's that?" Mittens' heart was beating, fast.

"I want you to come home with me and Penny."

Mittens blinked.

"Wait, you mean…?" Bolt nodded, a broad smile forming.

"Yeah. I want you to be a part of our family."

* * *

**A/N:** Countdown...3


	7. Recollection IV

**A/N: **The final recollection. Enjoy.

I just went for surgery on friday, and I just realised: I was almost acting like Mittens in this chapter. Wow, can you imagine that?

Thanks to carl1012.0, Bolt Lover, Bane767, kids rock, and mildirk for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 7: Recollection IV**

"You want me to follow you and Penny home?" Mittens couldn't seem to process the words.

"Yes, home. You know…letting Penny be your new person."

Mittens never even considered it till this point. She never imagined she'd have another person to care for her, to be her owner.

"I don't know…"

"You've been a pet before, haven't you? It shouldn't be too difficult."

"But Bolt, we don't even know if she would want us in the first place."

"Sure she would. She's Penny." He jumped onto the bed, signalling for Penny's attention. She looked up, while Rhino still chittered excitedly in her hands.

"Come on Mittens, get up here." He called.

"But Bolt, I…"

"Now, Mittens." He said it firmly. She gulped, before joining him up on the bed. Immediately she felt dwarfed—everybody was looking at her. She tried slinking back under, but Bolt didn't give her any chance. He pulled her right next to his side, causing her to feel a sudden rush of blood to her face.

"What are you doing?" She whispered, feeling his body warmth on her. He smelt of medicine and sterilised equipment.

Bolt didn't answer, instead rubbing his head affectionately on Mittens' head, whining and performing his epic 'dog face' for the rest to see: Ears dropped, eyes widened, and a tilted head to top it off. This brought the expected 'awwws' from the rest, while Mittens turned even redder, although her black fur masked that.

"I think I get it," Penny said, leaning forward. "You want to bring them with us, don't you?"

Bolt perked up, his expression turning to full-fledged joy. He licked Penny wildly in the face, before prancing around the bed, eliciting giggles and laughs from the rest who were watching.

"See? I told you she would take you in." Bolt gloated to Mittens.

"Yeah, you did Bolt, you did." She allowed herself a little smile, still blushing slightly.

"Hello, little girl," Penny said, extending a welcoming hand to Mittens. "Bolt wants me to bring you home. Are you okay with that?" Mittens hesitated. Bolt nudged her forward.

"It's okay Mittens, Penny won't bite." He said it with the utmost confidence.

Trying to endure it with as much dignity as possible, Mittens lowered her head, allowing Penny to pat her on the head. Penny didn't ask twice. She scratched Mittens behind the ears, while Mittens gradually leaned into her hand to feel more comfortable. She didn't trust Penny in the least at that point, but she was willing to give her a chance—give a chance for a new life with Penny as her new owner, and Bolt and Rhino as her new family.

"I guess that's a yes, then." Adrian said. She took a quick glance outside, just to make sure no one was being disturbed by the ruckus.

"Well, if that's settled, why don't you bring them both over to my office tomorrow to fill out the adoption forms?" Matt said, stepping forward. "I can give 'em a check-up too while they're there." Mittens stopped smiling.

_A check-up?_

* * *

"No! You can't make me!" Mittens screamed.

"Mittens, it's just the vet. He's not going to hurt you," Bolt said. "Now would you come out from under the bed already?"

"That's what they said the last time! And do you know what they did after that? They declawed me! Do you know what it's like to have your claws ripped out from you? Huh? Do you?"

"Mittens, I promise, he's not going to do anything to you. He's just going to make sure you're healthy, and then we can go."

"Yeah right! He's not going to get me with that again!"

Bolt sighed, shaking his head. They had somehow managed to make it through the night, but now it was morning, and they were scheduled for an appointment with Matt, the veterinarian. Mittens…well, you could see for yourself. She absolutely detested—more like had a phobia of—the vet, and now she was hiding under Penny's mattress in the hospital, shivering in fright.

Speaking of Penny, she had left with her mother to settle their contract once and for all. They had left the care of the animals with Adrian and Matt. You could see how this was turning out.

"Mittens, you can't stay there forever, you know."

"I know. I'm just waiting till you guys give up trying to bring me there."

"Get out from under there, will you?" Bolt ducked under the bed, trying to catch her. Mittens however was in a heightened state of awareness, and she smoothly slipped out from under the bed and out of his reach.

"Darn it! Mittens, stop running!" Bolt grunted, pulling himself out from under the bed, shaking off a few dust bunnies that had collected on his head.

The cat paid him no heed though, instead running and jumping up on the television on the table, somewhere Bolt couldn't reach.

"Get down here cat, we don't have time for this," Rhino called from below.

Her response was succinct: "No." But when she saw Adrian approaching, she leaped off the table, dodging every attempt by Adrian to catch her.

Even though both Adrian and Bolt were cornering her many times, Mittens somehow just managed to slip past them over and over until Adrian was breaking into a sweat.

"Geez, what's wrong with you, cat?" Adrian panted, wiping a few droplets off her head. "It's just Matt you're going to see." She cocked her head. "Actually, I think that makes perfect sense why you're running."

Adrian soon noticed that Bolt too was trying to catch her, and she responded to that fact by timing her movements to compliment Bolt's. After that it seemed as if they were going to corner her for good.

Mittens noticed this too, and that was extremely bad for her. She realised that by moving a few objects, they were slowly cutting off her running space in the large ward. Soon she had only half the room to run, then a quarter, then an eighth.

_They're catching up!_ She realised in a panic.

Eventually she was forced on top of the wooden table with the television next to it again. She knew there was no escape now. She hurriedly looked for options around her. One presented itself after a while as they edged closer.

"There is no escape, cat. Surrender peacefully!" Rhino declared, like police surrounding a fugitive's house.

Mittens raised a paw to the glass vase sitting on top of the table. All three pursuers froze.

"What are you doing? Don't touch that!" Bolt yelled.

"Alright, I've had it with you pooch. Back off, or the glass breaks."

"You wouldn't dare."

She tilted a vase forward, the water inside swishing around precariously. Even though the floor was carpeted, the height was considerably high enough to break the fragile—and very expensive—glass. Bolt tried to keep a straight face. He knew Mittens wouldn't do such a thing, but had second thoughts when it went to the halfway mark down. Bolt yelped in alarm, quickly taking a step back.

"Okay, okay! You win, you win!" His ears flattened and he lowered his head in submission. Mittens let the vase rest.

Bolt contemplated his options. He cast a sidelong glance at Adrian, measuring distances and calculating risks. He had to take a gamble.

"Okay, I won't force you if you don't want—hey…" He glanced up behind her. "That's a weird place to put a piano…"

Mittens almost laughed at the pathetic attempt to trip her up.

"Are you kidding? You really think I'll fall for the same trick twice?"

"Oh drat, I guess that won't work, huh." Bolt replied, smiling. Mittens felt a little chill down her spine when she saw that.

_Why is he smiling? What is he up to? _She watched the three of them intently, for even the slightest movement. There was none. She had a foreboding feeling, but decided it was just her overreacting nerves.

"Of course not. I've got my eyes on you this time," she said, sounding more confident than she looked.

"Sure you do," he hummed. More unease crept up on Mittens. She couldn't shrug them off this time.

"Um…right, so I want you to turn around slowly and—Ah!" Her eyes widened as a sharp prick was felt in her hip. She turned in shock, only to see a small needle sticking out right there, Matt standing right behind her. She hadn't even noticed him approaching from behind. She snapped back to Bolt. He was still smiling away.

_Wait, that's a…! _In terror, she leaped off the table in an attempt to reach the door. But when she landed, her footing had evaporated into thin air. Her legs turned to jelly, and in a moment she was lying prone, struggling to find purchase on the ground, which she could no longer feel.

Blinking heavily, she tried to move, but everything in her body refused to cooperate with her. Her muscles felt dead, and her brain processes slowed. She felt so tired, too tired to move, and too tired to think.

_Sleeping…dart…_

"Well, you took long enough, Matt." Adrian huffed.

"Sorry, I didn't think she'd be so difficult." He hastily replied.

During her last moments of consciousness, she could see the blurred form of Bolt walking right next to her and whispering into her ear.

"Well, Mittens, it looks like I outwitted you again, huh?"

Then everything went dark.

* * *

Mittens' head was pounding as she regained consciousness. She could tell that she was in a very enclosed area; the surrounding walls were pressing down on her body. But as her mind regained control and began to focus, she realised that the cramped feeling she had was not because of the size of the cage she was in, but because of the sleeping drug they had 'administered' to her. She could still feel the slight sting where the dart had struck.

Looking around, she realised she was in a pet carrier—a locked one, at that. Through the grills in the front door, she could see some people with their animals either on leashes, or being carried in their owner's arms. The realisation didn't make impact until a little later.

_I'm in the vet's office!_

"Ah! Let me out! Let me out!" She started banging furiously on the carrier's door. With every pound, she could feel a wave of aching pain travelling through her body.

"Oh hi, Mittens," Bolt said, appearing at the front door. "Did you sleep well?"

"I should've known you were going to do something like this! Let me out!"

"Sorry Mittens, no can do. It's almost your turn, you see. Don't worry, they won't take long."

"You…you! When I get out of here, I'm gonna…er…"

"Yes?"

"Argh! I tell you, I'm going to…erm…seriously wound you! I'm going to seriously wound you!" She started pounding on the door again.

"Sorry Mittens, but its Styrofoam. It won't be easy to break out. You don't have superpowers, you know." He replied coyly, sharing a grin with Rhino.

While Mittens continued whacking the door, Bolt and Rhino lazed around and played with some toys the vet's office held. After a few fruitless but noisy minutes, the sound died down.

"You alright in there, Mittens?"

Mittens didn't answer. If there was one thing she had learnt ever since being abandoned, it was that if you panicked, you would die. The streets had taught her to not only be tough, but also to be smart and resourceful. Taking deep breaths, she tried to examine her options. She needed to find a way out. She needed to get out before it reached her turn. She needed to find a place to run, and she needed a way to avoid anyone from finding her.

With all the questions in place, she set herself on finding answers to each one.

_First things first. I need to know how much time I have left._

"Number 26? It is your turn. Please proceed to room 1." Mittens picked up on this sound—the lady at the counter was speaking.

The gears immediately started twisting and turning.

"Bolt?" She spoke calmly.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"What's our number? I don't want to wait so long."

"It's 35, if I'm not wrong. That's what I heard from Penny anyway."

_9 more numbers, _she thought. One person would take about five to eight minutes, which meant that she had at least 45 minutes to escape. Plenty of time.

Mittens remembered someone mentioning that the vet's office was right next to the hospital, which meant that if her memory served, she could easily navigate around the area after she escaped. Now two questions were answered. The other two were much more difficult.

_How do I get out?_

Her question was answered almost instantly when she inspected her prison more carefully. But one thing was for sure:

She wasn't going to like it.

Bolt had been trying his best to make sense of a magazine he found lying on the sofa. Most of the words he did not know how to read, but there were also many colourful pictures for him to view. He was amazed people were able to bring beautiful objects and sceneries of the earth into a small piece of paper for all to see. He was just viewing Niagara Falls when a loud clang filled his eardrums.

He smirked, although he did not know why; seeing Mittens struggle and panic was becoming somewhat like a forbidden pleasure to him. Bolt wondered if he had become sadistic. Or maybe perhaps it was amusing to see Mittens—the cool, tough alley cat—squirming and acting like a little child. It was probably the latter, although he did not really discount the former.

"Hey Mittens, would you give it up already? You're gonna liquefy whatever brains you have left." Bolt found it very refreshing and satisfying to use her own words she said back when they were captured by animal control against her.

Incredibly, this situation was much like when they were caught, except the roles were reversed. Now Mittens was the one trying to get out by unreasonably banging hard on the door, while Bolt was trying to tell her it was impossible.

"Mittens?" Bolt asked again. He started to feel a little bit of worry now. It was funny to see her struggle, but he didn't want to see her get hurt trying to get out. She wasn't responding. He padded over to the front door and peeped inside.

"Hey Mittens, are you oka—" He gawked.

The cage was empty.

A rumbling of the front doors opening caught his attention, and he almost choked when he saw Mittens there, trying to sneak out. They locked eyes for a moment. Then, like the cat she was, she bolted.

"Rhino! Double time! Move, move!" He dashed out the door. Rhino was quick to respond, and within seconds he was keeping pace with Bolt, although Bolt knew he couldn't last long.

"What's going on?" Rhino demanded.

"We've got ourselves a prisoner to catch."

* * *

Mittens groaned when the doors slid open loudly. She had hoped for a quieter exit, but life wouldn't give her a good day. Bolt had noticed her making a run for it, and had chased immediately in hot pursuit. Being chased three times in two days was definitely not good for her heart. When she glanced over her shoulder, she could see Bolt's stupefied face, probably because he had no idea how she managed to escape. Mittens smirked, knowing exactly what he didn't.

Amazingly, when she inspected the bottom of the cage, she noticed that it was held up only by a few pieces of tape. It was probably very old, or badly broken. It didn't matter which for Mittens. She slowly tore through the pieces, one by one, until the bottom gave way and she managed to squeeze through.

She wanted to tear it open with her claws, but she didn't have any, so she had to make do with her tongue. Her tongue had become numb as a result, but she didn't care; she was free.

She was free now, but only after if she could evade her canine pursuer.

With the wind streaking across her face, Mittens raced down the avenue, grateful for the fresh air that did not smell like a hospital. Somehow, the scene looked like the common stereotype made by people: Dogs always chase cats. Mittens was willing to bet that at least half the people they ran past thought just that.

As they ran past the front entrance of the hospital, Bolt didn't notice someone coming out of the hospital doors, carrying a huge stack of paper that was tall enough to cover his face. He yelped as he tripped over the man—who also yelped in surprise—and tumbled a few times before coming to a stop. The man lost his balance and fell on his back, sending papers and files flying into the air and raining down like confetti. Shaking his head, Bolt picked himself up and continued chasing after Mittens. He felt a little bad, but he didn't want any more trouble than he had already gotten himself into.

Orderly Lexus Quirk thought that today was going to be better, but he was proven wrong when something…or someone slammed into him while he was carrying a large stack of carefully written documents that was just delivered to the hospital. He fell on his back, a few kilograms of fat paper landing and increasing the weight of the load, and in turn, the pain.

"Gah!" A stack fell on his injured wrist from the day Rhino and Mittens bit him. Sputtering, he brushed aside the white paper and brown files obscuring his vision, only to see another white object jump over him and run. It was a dog, and that just served to infuriate him even further.

_First a cat and a hamster, and now a dog! _Life sure loved to kick him in the nuts. At least a few hundred pages had been blown away in the warm wind or run over by burning hot cars. It was still only a few dollars' worth of paper, but many hours of work if he were to rearrange everything to its original state. As he mulled over his bad luck and suffering, Rhino ran past him, sparking the pain in his wrist.

"Wait, it's that hamster!" He tried scrambling to his feet, but as he brought himself up, he slipped on the many sheets of paper and tumbled back to the concrete floor face-first, landing very hard and chipping a nail in the process. He cursed under his breath and brought his fist down hard. And when he thought things couldn't get any worse than it already had, his fist drove right into a thumbtack that had come loose from a file.

"ARGH!"

Mittens heard the scream, and she hoped it wasn't anything serious. Thanks to the intervention of Lexus, she managed to lose both Bolt and Rhino. While they were busy being distracted, she had twisted and turned through the alley until she was quite confident she was far away enough from them. She slumped against a trash can, sighing and appreciating her moment of peace.

_Finally, I lost them._

She was revelling in her relief for quite a while, enjoying the silence and reprieve from the high-speed chase. But at that point, a sudden twinge of worry entered her head.

_What if he gets lost again?_

She knew that it was highly possible when it came to them. They had horrible senses of direction. And if they got lost somehow and ended up in some other part of the country, it would be _her _fault—she was the one that led them out.

_No, _she told herself. _They won't get lost. I'll just wait here a short while, and then I'll go back. They'll give up searching for me eventually and go back to the hospital.._

But things never go according to plan, do they?

Mittens caught a whiff of something. It smelt distinctly like…Bolt.

_How? He can't possibly be here. I ran too far for him to catch me._

"Actually, you didn't." She jumped. Rhino stood behind her, standing on the trash can.

"Rhino! How did you get here?" She balked.

"It matters not, cat. I am here to bring you back. Resistance is futile, so come quietly!"

"Oh yeah?" Mittens almost laughed. "You can't possibly drag me back there." Right when she finished, Bolt appeared, and in one swift motion, he swept her off her feet and pinned her to the ground, one paw on her neck, another on her hind leg.

"No, but I can."

* * *

Mittens was mortified. She tried digging her claws into the pavement, but it was useless—no claws, remember? Bolt also happened to overpower her by a large margin. He was dragging her across the sidewalk, a leash tied around her body and attached to his collar.

"Just like old times, right Mittens?" She didn't answer, trying in vain to free herself. Bolt lugged her around like some unwanted baggage. She wished she could bury her head in the ground.

People were stopping in their tracks to stare at the phenomenon their eyes caught a hold of. Some rubbed their eyes in disbelief. Others laughed heartily. A few even whipped out their phones and began snapping photos. Very soon they would be on the net for all to see, and Mittens knew that.

"Untie me, Bolt! Let me go!" Her pleadings were ignored thoroughly. Bolt stopped and smiled when a little boy walked up and asked for a photo. He obliged, although the cat did not. She began pulling feverishly at the leash that held her. At the very point where she yanked it taut, the boy's camera clicked, and the photo was taken. He thanked Bolt, patting him on the head, before hurrying home to show his parents. In the end, Mittens just gave up, sulking as she was pulled along on her stomach, leaving an amused group of people in their wake.

It was only after they entered the vet's clinic that her blood pressure leaped. The smell was one of the main contributors to her fear. Medicine, rubber gloves, iodine: all these assailed her nostrils as she breathed in rapidly. Every breath brought a spike of adrenaline in her body. Her phobia was acting up once again, and it was palpable.

Adrian was just about to call Penny to report that her animals had gone missing, but stopped when Bolt strolled through the door. She almost laughed her head off when she saw Mittens tied up like that. She fumbled around before she found her smartphone and snapped a picture. Mittens glared at her indignantly, in stark contrast to Bolt, who was grinning widely.

Matt had just noticed Bolt, Mittens and Rhino near the door, not knowing the epic chase sequence that had occurred. He smiled, walking over.

_That smile…_Mittens was seized up by terror. _He had that same smile…_Eyes still fixed straight, she fumbled around behind her until she found something to grab hold of. It was a standing lamp that stood next to the front door. In her final act of defiance, she clung on as tightly to it as possible.

"No! Don't bring me in there! I don't want to! I don't want to!"

Bolt tugged at the leash, but she wouldn't budge. _She must really be holding it real tight, _Bolt thought, surprised. He stepped back a pace, then, he counted to three before yanking as hard as he could.

Big mistake.

Bolt had underestimated Mittens' strength in sheer distress, so he definitely did _not _expect it when the lamp came crashing down, with her still clung firmly onto it. The head of the lamp smashed into a trophy and certificate cabinet harshly, and for a moment Bolt thought the glass was going to break. Thankfully it didn't, but his relief was short-lived, as the large porcelain vase sitting on top of the cabinet toppled over from the force of impact. He could only watch in horror as it fell to the ground right next to Mittens and shattered into a million pieces.

Mittens didn't see the vase fall and break, but she heard it clearly. She also felt it as some of the fragments flew past her and hit the wall, further dividing them. For a while she didn't move. Then, when she lowered herself to the ground, there was a painful sensation and the feeling of warm liquid. Scared, she let her eyes rest on her front paw. A dark red trickle was running down where a fragment cut it deep. It started pooling on the ground. She felt weak all of a sudden.

"Mittens! Are you okay?" Bolt yelled, running up to her. She trembled silently, still looking dumbstruck at her wound.

"You're bleeding!" Bolt had seen blood quite a few times now, but never really this much. "Help! We need help!"

Mittens shook her head quickly. "No…don't want help…" she croaked. "I'm…scared…" Bolt found it amazing—if not disturbing—that she would be more scared of a vet than bleeding to death.

"Mittens, stop!" Bolt raised his voice a little higher than expected. "Please, you're hurt! Matt can help you! He won't hurt you!"

Mittens fell silent, still cynical, and still defiant. Bolt looked at her with earnest eyes.

"Come on, Mittens, you're my friend. I would never let anything bad happen to you. You know that."

"Bolt…"

Mittens tried to move her paw, but the sting was too great. She whimpered weakly, knowing he was probably right. Matt was the best person to help her now. And although she absolutely despised the vet, she somewhat saw truth in Bolt's words. And also, the prospect of dying was quite a powerful motivator. He wouldn't lie to her. He never did. She could trust his words…right?

"…Okay. I'll go."

Bolt didn't wait for her to change her mind. He called for Matt, who hurried over. She shivered as Matt picked her up and hurried her over to the operation table.

"Don't worry Mittens," Bolt reassured. "I'm here. I'll be right beside you all the way."

* * *

An hour later, Penny was ruffling through a plastic bag when the operating room door opened. Matt walked out, carrying a calm, composed Mittens in his arms. Behind him, Bolt stumbled out, looking very much sick. Rhino walked up to them.

"What happened to Bolt?"

"He fainted halfway through the operation after seeing all the blood," Mittens replied. She turned to Bolt, smirking. "My hero."

"But it wasn't that bad, was it?" Bolt asked, slurred.

She was a little flustered at the question, because she knew he was right: the check-up was nowhere near what she had imagined it to be. After some initial pain from an anaesthetic injection, everything went smoothly as Matt disinfected the wound before sewing it up. At least, that was all she remembered. Most of the time she was screwing her eyes shut, bracing for the pain that never came.

"It was still horrible," she argued.

"Forget it. I give up." He collapsed onto the floor.

"Hi Penny," Matt said. "You're just in time."

"Hi to you too, Matt. What's with the bandage?" She pointed at Mittens' bandaged paw.

"Little cut. Nothing life threatening. Other than that she's perfectly healthy." He placed her tentatively on the ground. "The stitches can come off in about 2 weeks. And I'm pleased to say all three of _your _pets are fit and ready to go."

"Thanks, Matt."

"Oh, and one more thing," Matt said. "Did you know she's already been declawed?" Penny was rather surprised.

"Really? I thought she was a stray." She suddenly looked worried. "What if she belongs to someone else?"

"I was wondering about that too, so I went to look it up." He scratched his head. "But I couldn't find anything—no records, no chip, nothing. Your cat's a real mystery, Penny."

"Well, I like mysteries and surprises." She kneeled down in front of Mittens and Rhino.

"In fact, I've got a little surprise for the both of you." She turned to Rhino first. She brought out a clear transparent hamster ball from her bag and presented it to Rhino. His jaw dropped.

"A new ball? The legendary Penny bought me a new ball? This is the awesomest day ever!" He did a flip in the air, somehow defying the laws of physics.

"I've got something for you too, little girl." She reached into her bag and lifted out a small green collar, with a little bell on it. It jingled in her hands, which sent Mittens into a deep moment of thought.

Up to this point, she had assumed that humans were cold, heartless, selfish creatures, who only cared about themselves. But now her best friend was persuading her to reconsider that assumption, to join him in his family with humans, and give another chance to becoming a pet. She wondered: Was it really worth it? Was she really making the right decision?

_I came all this way to find Bolt because I wanted to be with him. It's Bolt. It's the right decision._

She stepped forward and lowered her head, allowing Penny to fix the collar around her neck. It was a perfect fit.

Mittens looked at the collar now. Now, she could see in it a fresh start, a new beginning, and a new family. One with Penny, her mom, Bolt, and Rhino.

"Welcome to the family, guys." She smiled.

"Let's go home."

* * *

Penny rose slowly, as the dream ended. She looked at the clock. 8.14 a.m.

_Family…_

For people who were now family, Penny knew little, if not nothing, about them. She had no idea where they came from, or how they came to know Bolt. Right now they were starting to wake up themselves.

"Morning little girl," she said sleepily. She brought Mittens onto her lap. Something clicked in her head then. She remembered from the night before that they could understand her perfectly.

"I never really thought about it, but do you already have a name?" Mittens nodded. Penny thought so. If they could talk to each other, they would probably have names to refer to each other. Their names, their origins…she knew nothing about them.

"Well, I guess today's as good as any other to find out."

********

* * *

**A/N:** Countdown...2


	8. The Game

**A/N**: I re-posted the 7th chapter, adding an extra section. If you have time, go check it out.

Thanks to carl1012.0, Bane767, kids rock, and mildirk for reviewing. A special thanks goes to QuaTraZ for the inspiration of this chapter. And by the way, you just lost The Game.

* * *

**Chapter 8: The game**

_Okay…how am I going to do this?_

Penny scratched her head, duly puzzled. She said that she wanted to find out more about her pets, but so far she'd hit a stone wall that refused to budge. That's because the problem was still the same. It always had been.

"You still can't talk, can you," she asked dully. They shook their heads.

_They can understand English, but they can't speak a word of it._

According to her theory she had been pondering since the night before, animals, being immersed in it almost every day through the times, it became somewhat ingrained in their minds, the same way a human child can pick up on any language given the appropriate environment. But because they lack the vocal chords to speak the human language and are unable to express their knowledge, they never bothered, thus eluding the notice of humans for decades…maybe centuries, even.

It was just a theory, anyway.

"Can you write?" Again, they shook their heads. Penny stood up and paced around the room. Her mind was running through various ideas, but none seemed viable.

_Darn it! There's nothing I can do to find out about them!_ Suddenly, she had a feeling that this discussion was going to be a lot less fruitful than what she expected.

"Penny looks really troubled," Mittens commented, watching Penny mumble several unintelligible words.

"She's like that. She hates it when she can't solve a problem. Sometimes, she will stay up an entire night just trying to solve something," Bolt replied.

They watched as Penny waved her hands around her head, snapping her fingers, trying to find a solution in her head.

At that point, Mittens had an idea. It was a stretch, but she had to try anyway. She meowed to get Penny's attention, before pointing at her front paws, making a circular motion around them while staring into Penny's eyes, willing her to understand.

"Mittens? What are you doing?" Bolt questioned.

"Playing a game my previous owner loved to play. It's called charades."

"Charades?"

"Later, Bolt. Later."

Penny seemed to get the hint. There was a spark of hope there—one way to find the truth. She was embarrassed she didn't think of it herself—she _was _supposed to be the brains of the Bolt-Penny team on the show, the one who came up with solutions to problems.

"You're acting out your name?" Penny asked for confirmation. Mittens nodded.

_Yes! There's a chance for this to work! _She stared intently at the cat, fully focused on her.

"Okay…you're pointing to your paws…is it paws?" She shook her head, emphasising the circular motion around her paws.

"Wait…white paws, is it white?" She shook her head. "Snow?" She shook her head. It was dumb, anyway. Who would call a black cat 'snow'?

Mittens stopped to think. After a while, she padded up to Penny and placed her paws in her hands.

"My hands?" _What does my hand have to do with this?_

Mittens repeated the circular motion once again.

"Wrapping around my hand…a glove?" Nope. Nowhere close.

Mittens brought her face close to Penny's hand and exhaled warm air onto it. Penny was puzzled. It seemed that she wasn't anywhere nearer to understanding them.

"Breath? Air? Wind?" Mittens shook her head, pointing to one side. "…Storm?" Again, no. Well, it would have been a nice name, anyway.

Mittens was starting to wish there were a literal pair of mittens lying about so she get this over with quick. Of course, it was never that easy.

"Your breath…it's warm…it's—" Mittens tapped her furiously on her lap, indicating she was on to something.

"Warm?" She nodded. "Okay…something to do with warm…" Mittens pointed to her hands once again.

"Warm…hands?" Mittens smiled. _Yes! I'm getting closer!_

Mittens once again repeated the circular wrapping motion around Penny's hands.

"Warm hands…around something?" Mittens nodded, making a rolling motion with her hands.

Penny scratched her head. She couldn't think of anything. She thought she was on to something, but in the end it just left her more confused than before. She couldn't think of anything to do with 'Warm hands around something'. Her hope was fading.

_No! I can't give up now! _She cranked her brain as hard as she could.

_Her name… her name has something to do with warm hands…around something. _Still nothing. Then, the image of the action flashed in her head. The circling around her hand…

_Wait! It's not warm hands around something—it's the other way around! It's something around warm hands!_

But warm hands didn't even make any sense in the first place. There wouldn't be any reason for hands to be warm. And yet the cat had specifically mentioned something to do with hands.

_Something around warm hands…warming the hands…something that warms hands, perhaps?_

She could feel herself getting closer. _Yes! Her name is something that warms hands! Something that keeps a hand warm!_

For a cat, Penny could only think of one possible name.

"…Mittens?" Instantly, the cat jumped into her arms with delight. Penny laughed, almost ecstatic that she managed to get it right. She cuddled the cat in her arms, who was now meowing with glee.

"So you're Mittens, I guess?" She giggled as the cat's fur tickled her skin. Mittens meowed in approval.

_Mittens…the cat._ It was fitting.

"Wow, Mittens! That was brilliant!" Bolt praised.

"You should be praising her, Wags," Mittens replied. "She's the one who figured it out, not me."

"And what about you?" Penny asked, looking at Rhino.

"Bah, this should be easy," Rhino proclaimed, before standing on his hind paws and outstretching one of his front paws, while the other went behind his head. His eyes bulged, while his tongue stuck out in some inane pose.

Now Penny was truly baffled. Was his name even a word in the English dictionary? There was nothing that jumped out at her specifically when she saw that martial arts imitation.

"Bruce Lee?"

Mittens face palmed herself. This was going to take forever to do, and Mittens had no intention of wasting hours on something as trivial as a name. She clambered off Penny's lap and walked over to the bookshelf, scanning the titles. She couldn't read all the names, but she only needed to see the top book's cover to find what she was looking for.

Penny, who was now up on her feet, seemed to get the idea and helped pull the book to the ground. Mittens flipped it open, and scanned the pages.

"What exactly are you doing, Mittens?" Bolt asked, walking up to her.

"Ending this little game." Bolt now understood why. The book was an encyclopedia on animals. It would take just a simple flip of the page to get Penny to understand. Mittens couldn't read the names of the animals, but she could recognise most of them.

Hey, not everything in life is exciting.

_Quail…Quagga…Queen Bee…_Mittens flipped passed the Q's and moved to the R's section.

_Rabbit…Racoon…Rat…_she smirked at the thought.

Finally, she arrived. A picture of a rhinoceros glared back from the page in the book, as if angry that it had been disturbed. Mittens pointed to the picture and motioned to Rhino. Amazingly, this entire time he was still stuck in the martial arts pose, not moving or even batting an eyelid. He was like some frozen wax statue.

Penny looked perplexed—in fact, she was. _Why is she pointing to a rhinoceros?_

"It's…a rhino," she said slowly.

Mittens nodded. Penny couldn't believe it.

"Rhino…the hamster?" Finally, he broke out of his trance.

"Well you know, my ancestry isn't _all _hamster. There's a little bit of—" Mittens covered his mouth with a paw, and nodded. This was something she had no interest in going through again.

Penny picked up the little rodent and smiled. "So you're Rhino, I take it?" He saluted and spoke something indecipherable to Penny.

"You know, I still think Bruce Lee sounds cooler," Penny remarked.

Mittens collapsed in exasperation.

* * *

The rest of the morning was spent watching tv, at the suggestion of Rhino. Nobody could be bothered to argue with him, so they just sat with him and watched several episodes of the newer shows.

When the afternoon came, most of the good shows had ended, so Penny offered to play outside.

"Hey mom! I'm going out to play with Bolt and Mittens!" Penny called from the living room.

"Alright, just be careful, and don't go too far off," came the reply from her mom.

Penny rolled her eyes, before picking up Mr Carrot in her hand.

"Alright Bolt, let's go." She looked back at the couch. "Is Rhino coming with us?"

"My apologies, Penny, but my area of expertise lies with the magic box! I have some important research to conduct."

"Which means to say he's too lazy to come," Mittens said.

Penny shrugged, leaving the house with Bolt and Mittens, leaving Rhino alone on the couch.

Penny noticed something when she was playing with Bolt. Even though he was more…human-like than she thought, he still acted like the dog she had always imagined him to be. Bolt was still the same cheery, loyal dog that he was, and he still loved her as much as she loved him. Very odd animals indeed…Penny thought. She wondered if other animals were just like them.

"Come on Bolt, you can do better than that!" Mittens laughed heartily as Penny waved Mr Carrot teasingly above his head, tempting him to jump and grab it.

"Why don't you try it, huh Mittens?" He jokingly called back.

"Eh, no thanks. It's a dog thing, ya know?"

"It's always a dog thing…" he grumbled, missing once again. "Why don't you have some good dog fun once in a while?"

"Because I'm a cat. Hello? Did you lose your brain back at the studio?"

"Still, you should try it. You might like it." Mittens shook her head mirthfully.

"Wags, the day Rhino becomes a hero and saves the world is the day I try being a dog."

"You know, I think I'll take you up on that," he said, before finally latching onto the stick and pulling it free from Penny's grip triumphantly.

"Speaking of Rhino, where is he?" Mittens asked, glancing around the garden.

"Isn't he still watching tv?" Bolt spoke through the stick, before passing it to Penny for another throw.

"I don't think so. The tv's off, and the lights are down."

"Maybe he decided to take a walk and get some exercise?" They looked at each other.

"Nah." They said simultaneously.

1 hour later, they were starting to become rather worried. Rhino had not turned up anywhere in the house. They had checked the kitchen, the dining room, Penny's bedroom, all the likely places he might be. But still there was no trace of him being in anywhere else in the house other than the living room. Penny didn't notice this though; she was busy arranging the photos she had taken for the day.

"Where could he be?" Bolt asked, checking below the sofa for the umpteenth time.

"I don't know, Wags. It's not like him to leave your side. Or the tv, for that matter." She thought about it. "Maybe he got sucked into the tv for watching it too much, like that show last night."

"This isn't the time for humour, Mittens. He could have wandered off and lost his way somewhere."

"No, Bolt, that's just you." He flashed her a glare. She didn't notice it.

"He's definitely not in the house, so he must be outside. Come on, let's go." They left the house by themselves, without Penny's knowledge.

The search was still fruitless outside the house. They checked the barn, the trees, the patches of tall grass, but there was still no sign of Rhino. It was like he just disappeared.

"This isn't working. There must be a way to cover more ground." Mittens said.

"Wait, maybe we could get a bird's eye view around here for more vision."

"How're we going to do that?"

"Literally." He looked up at the sky, where a lone pigeon was flying low. Bolt barked to get the pigeon's attention.

"Hey! Can you give us a hand?" Bolt yelled. The pigeon glanced down, before staring straight back ahead.

"It's not working, Bolt. He's not coming down."

But then, the pigeon dipped to the left, circling a few times in the air before gliding to a stop before them.

"Salutations, strangers. How may I help you?" He had an accent Mittens couldn't place.

"We're looking for somebody. A friend. He's a hamster."

"Ah, a hamster, you say? Perchance, would he happen to be brown, fat, around yea big?" He opened his wings.

"Erm, yes?" Bolt was a little puzzled. "Have you seen him?" The pigeon laughed heartily.

"Hah! It's hard to miss him when he's doing something so positively portentous! Yes, I just saw him a little way down the road. A rather serendipitous encounter, wouldn't you agree?" He chuckled.

"What?" They both asked.

"Indeed, what he's doing is certainly a rather prodigious pursuance."

Bolt and Mittens exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing.

_What the heck does that even mean!_

"Pity I didn't have time to spectate it though." He mused.

"I don't really understand him, Mittens," Bolt whispered.

"Me neither," she whispered back.

"Hey, where did you see this hamster anyway?" Bolt asked, trying—and failing—to make sense of the pigeon's words.

"Just down the road. You might want to exercise a little prudence when you get there."

"Right, thanks," Bolt hastily mumbled, before taking off with Mittens by his side.

"Hmm…" the pigeon wondered out loud. "That dog…I'm pretty sure I've seen him before…"He shrugged.

"I guess it slipped my mind. Oh well, c'est la vie." Humming a tune, he flew off into the afternoon sky.

As Bolt and Mittens ran, they wondered what in the world Rhino could have been doing. They shared anxious looks with each other, hoping that it wasn't what they feared it was.

* * *

"Oh yeah? You think you're so tough? Come on!"

Rhino had to admit: this was probably one of the most exhilarating moments of his life. This was something he had been hoping for ever since they had rescued Penny. But to his major disappointment, there was no action whatsoever among them. The lack of awesomeness had left him restless as the days went by, and the worst part was that Bolt didn't seem to mind! He seemed perfectly content with a sedentary lifestyle.

_What ever happened to all the bad guys? They never even captured Calico for sure! He could be somewhere out there, plotting another attack!_

But Bolt had dismissed it with a wave of a paw and a cheerful smile. _Don't worry Rhino, he's not coming back, _Bolt had said.

_But how can we be sure? Complacency has killed many a hero!_

And so Rhino had taken it into his own hands. He was putting himself under a serious training regime in order to prepare himself for the possibility of a surprise attack. He had been doing it secretly when no one bothered to check if he was there. But today, after watching the magic box, he had decided to take his training up to the next level.

It was a pretty big jump.

"Is that the best you've got?" Rhino taunted, standing proudly in front of an enraged bull.

"You think you're funny? I'll crush you!" The bull growled, his tail flicking irritably.

"Well, you've been saying the same thing for quite a while now, so…" That did it. As if something snapped in the bull's brain, he went into a frenzied rage and charged at Rhino.

Coolly staring at the incoming missile, Rhino tensed, not moving an inch. Then, when the bull was inches away and about to crush him with a hooved paw, Rhino ducked and barrel-rolled right underneath his legs.

Using that momentum, he gripped on tightly to one of the bull's hind legs and slowly hauled himself up on the bull's back. The bull didn't notice this however; he thought he'd crushed that rodent into the dirt. So he was very rudely shocked when he heard Rhino call from his head.

"Hey, so have you crushed me yet?"

"What! Get off my head!" He shook wildly, trying to get the irritant off.

"Whoa! Hahaha!" Rhino laughed callously while being lifted off the bull's head, hanging on by only a paw. And yet, he never acknowledged the true danger he really was in. He was blissfully ignorant of the consequences that could…and would befall him.

"Get. Off. Now!" With a resolute roar, he leapt into the air a few feet, throwing Rhino off and flying a good few yards away in the pen.

"Fully awesome!" He yelled as he flew through the air.

Rhino thought that this was probably one of the most blissful experiences of his life, being thrown through the air. It was like he was flying. Without his ball to impede his movement and stop the wind from reaching his face, he felt the full enjoyment of the short flight. He felt alive.

But it was only for a few seconds.

When he landed, the sensation went to the other end of the spectrum. Without his plastic ball to protect him, he took the full brunt of the impact on the hard gravel. Gone were the feelings of euphoria, replaced with a sharp stinging sensation. When he got to his feet, he could see now that mixed with the dirt and gravel over his body, was the slow trickle of blood. He winced in pain.

_What…? Why is it hurting so much?_

Being shielded so much, he'd never bled before and really felt the sting of real pain, much like a certain white shepherd. The characters on the magic box never really flinched when they bled buckets, but now he was facing a slight trickle and he couldn't bear it? He was understandably perplexed.

He was so absorbed in his problem, he didn't notice that the bull had seen him fly off, noticed him motionless on the ground, and had decided that it was the perfect time to exact his long-desired revenge. Checking his horns, he took a step backward before charging once more. No stepping on the rodent this time—he was going to impale him good. And if that didn't work, his body would probably be torn into two or more pieces.

Rhino however had noticed, and he was ready to go for another round, despite the new handicap he had been handed. He got into a ready stance, poised to evade.

"Rhino!"

But before he could react, something slammed into him from the side, causing him to feel momentarily disoriented. When he refocused, he realised it was Mittens who had grabbed him and thrown him away from the incoming attack. Bolt had stepped into the ring and drawn the attention of the bull away from Rhino. Not appreciative of the increasing amount of intruders and irritants, the bull turned and charged at Bolt.

Growling, Bolt stepped back, timing his move carefully. When the bull had reached maximum velocity, Bolt turned his back on him and gracefully leapt through a hole in the fence. The bull couldn't stop his charge and smashed into the fence hard. The whole fence shuddered at the impact.

"Run! Run!" Bolt yelled, as the bull was fighting a daze from the rebounding blow. Mittens picked the hamster up and ran.

They didn't stop until they were back in the house garden.

"That…was the awesomest thing EVER!" Rhino exclaimed, celebrating effusively.

"Rhino! What were you doing?" Bolt asked, concerned. "That was extremely dangerous!"

"Are you kidding? It was fully awesome!" He replied with enthusiastic motions. "You had that bull by the horns! The way you outmaneuvered that beast…and then drove him to his own demise…it was beyond awesome! It was be-awesome! That's the Bolt I know!"

"But you could have been killed, Rhino!" Mittens argued, feeling a little more than anxious that he was taking this so lightly, especially since he was injured.

"Oh would you relax, cat?" Rhino scoffed. "I've seen Bolt and a lot of other people do this on the magic box a million times. It's perfectly fine. And besides, it's awesome!"

"The…magic box?"

"Of course! Where else could you see such awesomeness like Bolt and his superbark? It would have been so awesome if he used it against that insidious beast!"

Bolt and Mittens shared uneasy glances at each other. They knew this was coming, and they knew what they had to do now. They wished that they'd never have to tell him, but now, after seeing him almost killed, it was apparent they had to. Mittens stepped forward.

"Rhino…we need to talk."

* * *

**A/N:** Countdown...1


	9. A Hero's Farewell

**A/N**: This is it. This is the first major milestone in my story. This is the chapter where everything will begin. If you have kept up through the more boring chapters up to now, I thank you. Better things will come soon.

Thanks to carl1012.0, Bane767 and mildirk for their reviews.

* * *

**Chapter 9: A Hero's Farewell**

"What are you saying!" Rhino shouted accusingly.

"Rhino. It's fake. All of it."

The words were coming fast and furiously, leaving Rhino even more confused—and angrier—than before. Nothing was sinking in.

"That's impossible!"

"Rhino, do you seriously believe everything the magic box tells you?" Mittens asked with a tone of contempt.

"Of course! The magic box always shows the truth!"

"Think about it Rhino, in real life, do things happen like they do in the magic box? Look at your arm; is bleeding as painless as they say? Can you smile like them when they bleed?"

"Of course not!" He scoffed. "The people on the magic box are legendary! _They _wouldn't flinch at a little blood!"

"They don't flinch because they're just pretending. The blood is fake, the actions are fake—everything is fake!"

"That's ridiculous!"

"There's a reason why it's called the magic box, Rhino. It's magic. There's no such thing as magic."

"I don't know what's come over you, cat, but I will not condone—"

"Rhino," Bolt interrupted, looking extremely pained. "It's true. The magic box isn't real." Rhino turned in horror.

"Bolt? Wha…what are you talking about? Why are you saying these things?"

"Rhino, what you're watching is television. It's entertainment for people. It's…not real."

"No! I refuse to believe that!"

Mittens took over from Bolt, further pressing the attack.

"Rhino, do you remember what the magic box said about Bolt? That he had superpowers?"

"Of course! He still has them! He always had them!"

"Rhino, have you actually _seen _Bolt use any of his powers? Through the weeks we spent together, have you seen him use any power even once?" Rhino fell silent.

_What about…? No, he didn't use any powers there. But then, what about that time at the—no…he didn't use his powers there either…_

"No…but that's because he wanted to save his energy for the fight with Calico!"

"He didn't use his powers because he never had any," she snapped. "They made him believe that he had powers. They tricked him, like they tricked you."

"I saw it on the magic box! They were completely real!"

"They're special effects, Rhino. Just like the lightning bolt on his side." Bolt turned his body to show Rhino. "See? It's gone. It was created. It's not real."

"But…"

"You remember, don't you, Rhino? The magic box always said Bolt's 'mark of power' was irremovable. Look, it's gone. It was paint."

He could see it, clear as day.

"But that doesn't mean he doesn't have powers!"

"Rhino," Mittens said firmly, almost to the point of being cold. "Bolt doesn't have any superpowers. He never did."

At that point, Rhino remembered something.

"He did the superbark at Calico's lair! I heard it! Everybody heard it!"

"That was a normal bark, Rhino," Bolt spoke quietly, feeling a jab with every word he spoke. "You heard an echo from the vent. The same one you did in the house on wheels."

"An echo? Bolt! Why…why are you…!"

"I don't have superpowers, Rhino. I don't have super strength. I don't have a superbark. I can't save people, even if I wanted to." Every word tore a new wound in his heart.

_No… no…it's not true! It's not true!_

_It can't be true…_

But no matter how much he kept repeating it to himself, he couldn't make himself believe it. This wasn't some blurry argument. His own hero was telling him, in black and white, he didn't have any powers, that everything he believed in was not real. What could he do to refute that claim?

Nothing.

Rhino fell silent for a long while.

"You mean, you didn't use your powers back then because…" The words got caught in his throat.

"…Because I don't have any powers."

Dawn broke at last. The silence that ensued gripped Rhino like nothing ever before. His world had been flipped over in the span of 2 minutes.

_It…can't…be…_

"Everything…everything I saw on the magic box…about you being a super dog…was fake?"

"Yes, it was."

"Then, just now…you came in…I could've been…"

Mittens and Bolt winced; realising you could have been killed was a truth sometimes best left unknown.

"I'm sorry, Rhino."

"I…I need to get some air. Excuse me." He limped away, as if suddenly the wound on his arm had taken its toll.

As Rhino dejectedly left, Bolt looked at Mittens with pain in his eyes.

"This is all my fault, Mittens…" Bolt whined. He felt only utter remorse as he watched one of his best friends hurt, scarred emotionally, and almost killed.

She looked back at him, sadness evident in her eyes as well.

"This isn't your fault, Bolt. You were just trying to look out for him. I wish we didn't have to do it."

"Is he going to be okay?"

"I don't know. That's up to him. He needs to figure this out by himself."

* * *

"Hey guys, dinner's here," Penny said as she set down two bowls of food on the ground. Mittens and Bolt walked over.

Penny looked around, puzzled.

"Where's Rhino?" Both of their gazes shifted simultaneously to the window. Silhouetted in the night sky was Rhino, sitting alone quietly.

"Is he okay?" Penny started walking towards him, but stopped when Bolt placed a paw on her foot. He shook his head sadly.

"Did something happen?" Bolt nodded. She looked back at Rhino.

"Alright then, I'll let you handle it. Just be careful, okay? Remember, you're friends."

_Some friends, _Rhino thought bitterly, hearing Penny from outside. _They never bothered to tell me the truth for so long! They just let me live a lie…_

He got up suddenly, feeling the sharp burn of the graze. He had yet to clean himself up, and he was a bloody mess. Ignoring it, he limped off towards the barn right behind the house without a sound.

_Yes, believe in yourself! You are a hero, and no one can tell you otherwise! _Sarcastic voices were mocking and fighting for attention.

_It's Bolt, the super dog! He's fully awesome, right?_

Then, as the furious voices were peaking in volume and intensity, a rumble of thunder sounded, and a flash of lightning lit the sky for a brief moment. Then, the rain started to fall.

Rhino stopped in the middle of the garden, letting the harsh droplets pelt against his body. The rain was coming down at an almost rhythmic pace, as if it were singing some song. The rain mocked him, laughing at his plight, revelling in his misery. It washed away the blood, the dirt, and it numbed the pain in his arm. But it didn't wash away the pain that struck his soul.

_I've been living in a dream all this time…_

In fact, he still felt like he was dreaming. He was wishing it were all a bad dream, that he could just wake up and everything was back to the way he wanted it to be. But he somehow knew that it wasn't going to happen.

_Everything…everything wasn't real._

The intensity of that truth weighed very heavily on Rhino's shoulders, like deadweight.

_Then…what was I doing throughout the whole trip?_

In 10 seconds, his mind ran through everything he did over a month. When the results came back, he was heartbroken.

_Nothing. Everything I did was useless._

"_Actually, you did do something useful. You managed to get a ladder back then," _a voice pointed out in his head. If Rhino could, he would have strangled it.

What did he do? He acted as a sentry when everybody was asleep, he regularly scouted for incoming air strikes, and he discussed and formulated battle strategies in his mind. Only now did he realise that Bolt and Mittens were probably playing along with him, knowing these things would never come.

_They knew…that's why they never took me seriously._

Never before had he felt so useless. Nothing was piecing together, nothing was sinking in.

_I thought I was helping, but I was…I was just being a nuisance._

Truly, if everything he watched was real, he would've been doing them a good favour. But because it wasn't, what he was doing was as good as doing nothing at all.

_It was worse than that. I could have gotten Bolt and Mittens killed!_

Thinking about it now, everything that happened to them was mostly his fault. He was the one who suggested they jump onto a moving train. He was the one who tried to stop Mittens from helping Bolt. He was the one who let them get captured by animal control.

_Everything…everything bad that happened to them was my fault._

He was alone now. The noise of the thunder was usually an unwelcome sound, but today Rhino embraced it with open arms. He wanted everything to go away, to leave him alone. And if not, he wanted to drown them out.

_Why…why did he say everything about being a superhero when I met him?_

He recalled meeting Bolt, joining his team…being extremely excited about everything he said and did…then jumping onto a moving train…He winced at the thought now.

After that, Mittens and Bolt were taken by animal control…and then, he managed to free Bolt.

_After I freed Bolt…_

Something was off there, but he never thought hard about it. Now he was, and he could see it differently now.

"_You…you opened the door?" Bolt said, utterly surprised._

"_Yes I did! Meoink!"_

"_Well, that's great Rhino…yeah, that's really good." He looked down._

Rhino paused.

There…Bolt was different there.

"_I…I can't do it." Bolt stopped, sitting down._

"_What did you say?" Rhino had exclaimed._

"_I can't."_

"_Wha…Who are you?" _

"_Rhino…you just…you just don't…"_

"Don't understand." Rhino whispered. _I interrupted him. I didn't let him finish._

"_You are Bolt!" he had said._

"_But I'm not a s—"_

"Superhero. I'm not a superhero." Rhino buried his head in his paws.

_He must have just figured it out himself then. _Something told him it was probably because he couldn't open the door on his own.

_How could I have missed it all this while? How could I have been so stupid?_

The deafening silence of the rain offered no answer, only listening, not commenting.

"I'm so useless…" He said, gripping his head tighter with his paws.

_Why…why didn't they tell me? _The pain turned to anger now, but it soon froze over when he heard someone nearby. It was almost impossible to see, but Rhino could make out the figure to be Mittens. It was almost impossible to see her black body in the black darkness, but her green eyes gave her away.

"_Rhino, would you stop being such a baby and get on with life already?" _Those were the words he had fully expected to hear from her. But she said nothing. Instead she sat a little distance away from him, and even then it was hard to see her.

"What are you doing here?" He said, without even realising it.

"You know…just enjoying the rain."

"You're a cat. You hate the rain."

"Yeah, I guess. But then again, I don't remember you being too fond of it either."

Rhino didn't respond to that statement. A few seconds passed without a word being said between them, with only the sound of rain and thunder there to fill the silence.

"…You're not useless, you know." she suddenly said.

"What?"

"You're not useless," she repeated.

"What are you talking about?"

"I heard you just now. You're not useless, Rhino. You did a lot. You did things that helped us make it through in one piece while we were travelling."

"What things? I put you both in danger! I almost got you both killed! Twice!"

Mittens looked over at him.

"Rhino, things already happened as they have. Your actions brought us to this point. Penny's safe. She's re-united with Bolt. I have a new home. I'd say everything turned out fine." She took a pause.

"In fact, if you weren't there, I'm pretty sure things wouldn't have ended up this way."

Rhino grumbled something under his breath that sounded a lot like 'nonsense'.

"Do you remember Ohio? You saved me from the shelter."

"That was Bolt. I didn't do anything!"

"Actually, that's not true. You were the reason that Bolt came back for me."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Bolt told me. After he realised his powers were fake, he became depressed. You remember, don't you?"

"Yeah, I remember completely misunderstanding the whole situation."

"It doesn't matter. You gave him hope. He told me that he was ready to give up, to just walk away. But you changed his mind, Rhino. You believed in him, when he couldn't believe in himself. And because of that he came back for me. You brought him back on his feet. If you didn't do that, I would still be rotting in that cell."

She smiled a sincere smile, through the thick downpour.

"Bolt's grateful to you for that. And…I'm grateful too."

Rhino looked away, trying not to meet her smile. He couldn't bear to.

"If I didn't make you both jump onto the train, you wouldn't have been captured by animal control in the first place."

"But because you did that, I was able to convince Bolt his powers weren't real. He could've killed himself many times over if he didn't realise that. You did him a huge favour, Rhino."

"That was just coincidence," he muttered.

"That's not all you did. Do you remember Vegas?"

"Yeah, Bolt left. He went to…" he bit his lip. "He went to face the green-eyed man alone."

"Do you know why he really left, Rhino? The real reason?"

Rhino looked up now, through the pouring rain. Mittens was soaked to the bone. Her fur clumped down, water dripping from the side of her head and her whiskers. It was amazing she was able to smile through all this.

"It was my fault that he left. I was selfish. I wanted him to stay in Vegas, even though I knew he wasn't going to."

Mittens closed her eyes, before speaking again.

"I wasn't going to go back after him. But you changed my mind. Do you remember what you told me?"

"…You never abandon a friend in a time of need."

"Yeah. If it wasn't for you, I'd never have gone back. I'd never have been able to tell Bolt that Penny still loved him, Bolt wouldn't have heard Penny's call for help, and she would've…she probably wouldn't have made it through the fire."

He turned away again.

"Everything you said I did…they were accidents. I never really did anything directly that helped you, or Bolt."

"You're wrong," she stated bluntly. That got his attention.

"At Calico's lair, you did something I know no one else would've done. You helped to hold open the door long enough for Bolt to slip in during the fire to save Penny. You put Penny's life above your own back then. You risked your life for someone you never even met before. That was the bravest thing I've ever seen."

She paused. "What do you think would've happened to Penny if you didn't do that?"

This time Rhino didn't respond for a good minute. The rain wasn't letting up, and it splashed down onto the earth, sending mist spraying into the air. Of course, that was almost impossible to see in the inky darkness of the night. Something was building up inside him. He wanted to know something else.

He needed to know.

"…Why?"

"Why what?" she said.

"Why didn't you tell me before? Why didn't you tell me everything wasn't real?"

Mittens looked him straight in the face. Her look was not cold. Instead, it radiated warmth through the chilling wall of rain that separated them.

She took a deep breath, before saying it.

"Because…Bolt told me not to."

Rhino would have let his jaw drop if it wasn't for the fact that it would flood with water in a matter of seconds.

Mittens continued. "He cared about you. He didn't want you to feel the pain he felt."

Rhino didn't respond.

"I think Bolt is hurting as much as you are right now, if not more. He feels horrible about this. He never wanted to break it to you this way. But because of just now…" she let it hang.

"He doesn't want to put you in any more danger. He doesn't want to see you hurt. That's why he had to tell you this way."

_Is that really the truth? _It sounded too convenient.

"You always wanted to be a hero like Bolt, right?" Mittens suddenly asked. The question caught Rhino off guard.

"No…I'll never be a hero like Bolt was. He was legendary."

This time, she stepped right in front of him, using her paw to lift his head up to meet her green eyes.

"Rhino, you're an annoying little hamster who talks too much, but you are a hero. You may never be able to do things like the heroes on the magic box, but what you did already makes you a hero in our eyes. You may not have saved a little girl from a blazing building, but you were the one who made it all happen. And truthfully, I think that makes you just as legendary as he was."

She brushed away a lump of dirt that was stuck to his head

"I just want you to know that no matter what happens, you're a part of our family, and there will always be people who care about you." She stood up, smiling, her eyes shining in the dark.

"Don't stay out here too long, okay? You'll catch a cold," she said finally, before she turned back towards the house and walked off, disappearing into the darkness.

Rhino stood alone in the darkness. The words that had been just said to him had left him…turgid somehow. Not himself. Or maybe it was just the rain that saturated his fur with water. Whatever it was, Mittens had a point. He couldn't stay out there in a downpour for too long.

He thought of going back to the house, but decided against it. Last thing he wanted right now was people asking him questions. He decided instead to head for the old barn out back. Nobody should be there…at least, that's what he thought.

The large doors were ajar, albeit only a little. It was enough for him to squeeze through though, so it was enough. The air was dusty, accumulated from the years. A distinct potpourri of smells wafted around, which was odd, considering it was just a barn. It was deserted, as far as he could see, and the diminished light from outside did little to illuminate the darkness.

It didn't matter to Rhino anyway. Water pooling at his feet, he shook some of it off. Not bothering to go much further in, he moved over to the furthest place the light could reach—which really wasn't really far—and sat down, leaning on a small wooden crate.

From inside the barn, he glanced out through the little crack which he came in from. Again he wondered why Mittens had come out and drenched herself just to cheer him up. Cats hated water…at least, that's what the magic box said. Was it true? Or was it just another lie?

His mind was still like murky water. Nothing was clear. Everything was still a mess. The conversation he just had only added to the confusion. He didn't know what was going to happen now, but he hoped that things would be clearer in the morning.

He doubted it.

Watching the raindrops fall, one by one, his breathing slowed, and he closed his eyes to rest.


	10. Hope Rising

**A/N:** Thanks to Aronim, Bane767, kids rock, carl102.0 and Mildirk for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 10: Hope Rising**

_No matter how bad the situation gets…there is always hope._

Rhino stared blankly at the barn ceiling, watching dust mites float about. He tried counting them. It gave him a headache. He decided to look outside instead. The morning light was getting brighter with every passing minute.

He had woken up at the crack of dawn, watching everything around him for two hours. He had slept at least a full seven hours, but he was still exhausted. Tired, but not sleepy. Even after everything Mittens said, he was still unsettled.

He was so lost in his own world that he didn't notice a figure walking up to him.

"Hello? Is anybody alive in there?"

Rhino heard the words, but they didn't register. A hand floated above his face, snapping its fingers, before a face appeared.

"You were lying there for quite a while. You okay man?"

Rhino didn't respond, just staring lifelessly at him.

"Guess not," he mumbled. He disappeared from Rhino's line of sight.

After a few seconds, there was a grunt, before a douse of water splashed over Rhino.

"Wah!" He jumped upright, sputtering and coughing out water that had entered his throat. There was a grey-furred rat in front of him. His fur was dishevelled, much like Mittens, but oddly, he didn't stink or reek. By his looks and his tone of voice, Rhino could guess that the odd newcomer was a fair bit older than himself.

"Oh boy that was close. I thought you were dead there. Can't really have that, now can I?"

"What was that for?" Rhino said, more surprised than angry.

"You weren't moving, and that gave me a scare. I thought you had a stroke or something. You alright?" He asked again.

"I'm…fine."

"Well, you look starved, man. Come on, let me get you something to eat."

A minute later, Rhino was sitting on a wooden crate deeper in the barn. The area had been modified to make some living quarters. Near the makeshift bed, Rhino could see a haversack, presumably belonging to the newcomer.

"Sorry, I don't usually have guests. This is all I can give." He placed some dried biscuits in front of Rhino.

"No, no, it's okay." Rhino replied quickly.

"You stay around here?"

"I live in the house right in front."

"You don't say?" The rat said. "Well, I guess that means this barn belongs to you. Sorry about that."

"Why are you here?"

"I just wanted a place to rest for a while. I'm travelling off again soon. I hope you don't mind. Why are _you _here? It's too nice of a day to be lounging around indoors."

"I'm…just thinking," Rhino said, feeling a sudden relapse of depression.

"About what?"

"...Stuff."

A few awkward seconds passed silently.

"You feeling okay? You look out of it."

"I'm fine."

"Doesn't look like it. What's wrong, brother? You can tell me."

Rhino looked up at his host. He had the same sincere look on his face as Mittens.

"I really don't think you can help with my problem."

"Actually, I think I can. Been travelling for years, I have. I've seen many people like you, with similar problems. Comes with age, you know?"

Rhino considered it. He seemed sincere, and wise enough. He doubted the stranger would understand, but if he wanted to know, he guessed there wasn't much for him to lose. He sighed.

"Do you watch television?"

* * *

The silence was unsettling.

Both Bolt and Mittens were sitting on the living room couch quietly, both of them thinking the same thing.

_He's not here._

They were watching tv, but somehow both of them couldn't hear it. Without their friend who usually manned the remote, they felt like something in their daily routine was missing. They didn't know what to do.

They watched the door, waiting for Rhino to walk in with his effusive grin. He didn't. Nobody did. The room was quiet, as Penny was still sleeping. Her mom was…somewhere in the house; they didn't really want to disturb her.

"Don't worry Bolt, he'll be fine," Mittens said, only half-believing herself.

"I…don't feel like watching tv, Mittens. Can we do something else?" He replied uneasily.

"Okay, Bolt. Let's go do something else." As they left the room, the television faded to black, signalling that it had been turned off.

* * *

"And that's about it," Rhino said.

The rat listened attentively through Rhino's recollection of the cross-country journey: Meeting Bolt, Mittens, and the journey itself. Occasionally he would ask a question, but other than that he didn't speak. When Rhino finished, the rat nodded understandingly.

"Wow. That's really amazing. What you've been through, it's so…surreal."

"Um…I guess so. What do you think of it?"

"Honestly, I'm kinda jealous. It sounds like it was really exciting. Wish my life was that good." He paused. "Sorry, going a little off there. But brother, if you ask me, I think you're overreacting a little. Television is still just television, whether what they show is real or fake."

He took a breath, before continuing.

"I know it's tough, having to go through this 'living in another world' thing. I've been through something similar myself. And I can tell you for sure that it ain't a walk in the park. But I've learnt that sometimes, you just have to take it in stride and move on. No point in making yourself unhappy. It's bad for ya." He popped a biscuit into his mouth.

"And besides," he said between chews. "You don't need to think too much about this. You can always watch television to relax, get a little laughter and joy out of it. You might realise that life's a lot more fun when you take more things in life less seriously." He yawned, as if to accentuate his words.

"Yeah, but what about the other thing…about Bolt…" The rat stretched his paws lazily.

"Right, that. I'm pretty sure everybody dreams about the same thing all the time. We all want to be a hero." He grinned.

"I know. But I guess it's not possible for me," Rhino said, his head dipping sadly.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm just a hamster! I can't do anything!"

The rat laughed dismissively.

"That's not true. I know people who've done great things, even though they're as small as you."

"Like who?"

"I have a cousin, or was it a nephew? I can't really remember. In our family, things are pretty messed up. So anyway, I have this…relative of mine. His name's Remy. He had this crazy dream; he wanted to be a chef."

"A chef?"

"Yup, a chef. Cooking with fancy spices and stuff for people to eat. And not just simple dishes, either. He wanted to make the best in human culinary cuisine. It's his passion." He took a dramatic pause. "Of course, there was a problem—he's a rat. People don't really fancy a rat cooking their food, or even going anywhere near their food, for that matter." He chuckled.

"He never gave up though. He kept trying, until someone finally accepted him for who he was and gave him a chance at it."

"What happened then?"

"It's a funny thing, really. The restaurant they let him work for got closed down because of him. People really don't like rats." He laughed. "But it paid off. Now he has his own restaurant in Paris, and it's famous. That's Paris, man! He's the inspirational hero to all us rats out here living ordinary lives."

"That's…quite impressive."

"Yeah, makes me so proud to be his uncle! Um, I mean cousin, er…never mind. The point is, when I spoke to him, he told me that if you want to fulfil your dreams, you have to have belief. When you have belief, you can accomplish great things. I'm sure you can do the same, brother."

"But I don't really have...wait a minute. You spoke to him?"

"Yeah, I've been to Paris. Last year, in fact."

"How did you get there? How did you get _here_? I thought Paris was in France!"

"I took a plane. Believe me, you don't want to know." He laughed. "Brother, amazing things can happen when you put your mind to it. When you have the desire to accomplish something, you'll find a way to do it."

"But at least he could cook. I've got nothing."

"Brother, we've all got something. You just haven't found your spark yet. Once you do, I'm sure you'll see the path to become whatever you want to be. You don't need to have superpowers to get there. You can find something special in yourself, and that will be enough to fulfil your dreams."

"Sounds kinda…"

"Familiar? Yeah, that's 'cause I got it from the tv." Rhino gave him a look.

"What?" he laughed. "You know, the strange thing about television is that actually, most of the time, what they show is more real than we think it is."

_Real? What the television shows can be real?_

"...I'm just wondering about something," Rhino said. "What's your own dream?"

"My dream? My dream's to find my way home, to find my family. I'm searching the world right now, and I won't stop until I find them again. That's why i was in Paris. In fact, I'm about to move off again."

_Sounds a lot like Bolt there…_

"I see. Thanks for all your help…um…I never really got your name."

"Name's Leonardo, brother. What about you?"

"I'm Rhino."

"Rhino the hamster…" Leonardo mulled it over. "That's an awesome name for someone like you."

"Thanks, Leo. Thanks so much. I hope you'll find your family soon."

"No problem brother. I hope you'll find what you're looking for too. Sometimes, it's closer than we think." He winked. "Take care, Rhino, and I wish you the best."

With those final words, he waved goodbye and disappeared out the door, out into the world.

Rhino stood alone again, but this time he could see he could see the sunlight which he could not see before. His heart finally felt at peace with himself. The storm had passed.

He knew what he had to do now.

* * *

"_Captain! They're everywhere!"_

"_Quick! Seal all entry points! Flanks coverage!"_

Mittens and Bolt were talking with each other in the dining room when they heard the loud voices shouting. They knew that Penny was in her room, so that meant only one thing.

"Rhino!" They leaped towards the living room.

Sure enough, he was there, sitting on the couch in his ball. He smiled when he saw them.

"Hey guys, how've you been?"

"Rhino!" Bolt said. "I…I…"

"Don't worry Bolt. You're still fully awesome!"

"Rhino…you're okay?"

"Yeah, I am. In fact, I'm feeling great! Thanks for the talk, Mittens. it really helped."

"You're…welcome." Both of them were stunned at his exuberance. This was not what they expected.

"Wanna watch some tv?"

"Sure," they replied.

They couldn't help but glance at him ever so often. He looked comfortable sitting there in his ball, laughing away at the jokes and the shenanigans the television showed. Eventually they grew more comfortable, and settled down next to him, enjoying the programme. It was as if nothing had changed, although everything had.

Penny and her mom eventually joined them on the couch, watching the show with them. Penny was especially pleased to see Rhino when he saluted her, like he always did.

The programme ended on a high note; the hero of the show had assumed command of the army in lieu of his dead captain and successfully pushed back the opposing forces. As the credits rolled, the soldiers celebrated. There was hugging and cheering as they threw up their helmets, knowing they had won the battle.

After the credits ended, there was a commercial. This one piqued the interest of everyone on the couch. It was a teaser trailer, for the new season of 'Bolt'.

The trailer opened with a scene of a dark hospital. Mittens shuddered, while Bolt grinned. There was a girl on the hospital bed, her head wrapped in bandages. Everybody watched in amazement as the trailer filled up a problem that came with hiring a new actress for the show: How to explain the change in face. The show claimed Penny had injured her face during the escape of Calico's lair, and had to undergo facial reconstruction.

The teaser trailer continued.

Calico had infiltrated the hospital, and was about to inject Penny with a malicious looking green liquid, but was stopped short when the new Bolt used his laser vision to break the syringe, before pinning Calico to the ground, growling menacingly.

With a superbark, the wall of the hospital was blown out, allowing Penny and Bolt to leap out of the hospital. But as they jumped, they were stopped mid-air by a beam of light. When they looked up, they saw many oblong hovering objects in the sky. They screamed as the tractor beam pulled them into the ship.

Calico appeared at the hole in the wall caused by the superbark, staring with fury at the ships as they pulled away and disappeared into the sky.

"Aliens," he hissed.

The tv went black. Rhino had turned it off.

"That is totally unrealistic."

"Absolutely ridonculous," Bolt commented.

"You can say that again," Mittens added. Penny's mom reached over and scratched Mittens on her back, causing her to arch her back in pleasure.

"Oh yeah, oh yeah, right there…yeah…that's the spot…" Mittens purred, leaning into her side, while Bolt and Rhino exchanged smiling glances.

There was a squeak, before Mr Carrot came sailing through the air, landing on the couch in front of Bolt. Instinctively, he jumped at it, gnawing it a few times before rolling onto his back. Upside down, he saw Penny giggling, staring into his eyes.

"Hey there silly doggy!" She walked over to the front of the couch and sat down, pulling out her Polaroid camera. With Mr Carrot still in his mouth, Bolt moved next to Penny, before she snapped a picture of all four of them, together.

"That's a keeper," she said. Bolt yipped in approval.

"You wanna go play outside? Huh, do ya?" She teased him. Obviously, Bolt approved.

"Let's go!" She grabbed Mr Carrot and ran outside. Bolt playfully growled and chased after her, barking happily, knowing he was finally at home with his person.

Smiling silently, Rhino leaned back in his ball. Now that he learned the truth, he saw things differently. What he once revered on the magic box, was now just normal, just entertainment to him. 'Bolt' wasn't real, but it was okay.

_Besides, I've got the real Bolt right here. That's good enough._

Through the window, he could see his hero, prancing around his person joyfully. Beside him, he could see Mittens, curled up contently on the couch. In front of him, the picture Penny took smiled at him. He had to smile back.

Bolt was finally reunited with Penny.

Mittens had a new home and a family.

Everything was going to be alright.

Rhino felt a sense of belonging now. He had a home, and a family who loved him. He had won a battle within himself, and that was a good enough reason to cheer.

Of course, things would never really be alright, as he would find out soon enough, but that was another day. Today, he would relax.

He thought of Leonardo, whose voice echoed inside his head.

"_I'm sure you can do it, brother. Believe in yourself!"_

"Thanks, Leo. I know you'll find your way home," he whispered.

"What was that, Rhino?" Mittens asked.

"Nothing. I'm just glad to be home."


	11. Words

**A/N**: My apologies for the late update. I re-wrote this chapter 3 times, changing it every week. I needed to make it fit with the coming chapters. Also, a new school and a higher level of education doesn't help much with the amount of time I have to write. But it has given me time to think of how to progress the story. Fret not, I will see this through to the end.

Thanks to digimon, Bane767, Aronim, carl102.0, Carl Minez and Mildirk for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 11: Words**

Monday, two weeks after the fire. A new week, a new slew of problems and events occurring in the house. This would be a very important week for the three animals. This would be the week where their dreams would be tested, to see whether they would become reality. Three people, three dreams, three voices.

"_Who am I? What can I become?"_

"_What is real? Am I enough for her?"_

"_Why am I feeling this way? Is this right?"_

"_I want to keep her safe."_

"_I want to tell him."_

"_I want to be somebody."_

* * *

"_It's out there somewhere…"_

Monday morning began on a quiet—and odd—note, as Bolt realised. Mittens and Rhino were keeping to themselves, and they were in different parts of the house. Rhino didn't worry Bolt so much. He was still a little shaken by the truth, but he was taking it rather well. In fact, if he didn't know better, he would've thought Rhino hadn't changed at all.

But truthfully, Bolt was happy Rhino hadn't changed. Somehow, imagining Rhino as anything other than his overexcited, happy self was impossible for him.

It was 8.30, and Rhino was seated in front of the television. He was running through some channels, pressing buttons and raising the volume. Bolt noticed a fire in his eyes he never saw before. He jumped up onto the sofa to join him.

"Morning, Rhino," Bolt chirped happily. "What're you doing?"

"Morning, Bolt!" Rhino replied, smiling. "I'm looking for inspiration on the magic box. I need something to go on, and I think I can find it here."

"Inspiration?"

"Of course! Whenever in doubt, the magic box has the answers."

Bolt was about to ask what he was talking about, but Penny's voice interrupted that.

"Hey Bolty, wanna go for a walk?" He turned to face his person, his tail wagging excitedly at the notion. Penny was smiling down at him.

"It's been so long since we've had a walk together. I thought that since we have the chance now…" She didn't need to say much more. Bolt was already at her side, ready to go.

"Wanna come, Rhino?"

"No thanks, Bolt. This is your time with Penny. Enjoy your walk." He saluted the two of them.

Bolt did his best to salute back, and the two of them left. Rhino settled back into his ball on the sofa, feeling a burning in his heart. Today he was filled with more energy than usual, something he hadn't felt since being accepted into Bolt's team. Inspiration, it was close.

_It's out there somewhere._

* * *

_This is life._

The morning dew had collected on the blades of grass all around. They looked like shimmering crystals to Bolt. He stuck close to Penny's side, hearing, feeling each step they made together. This was nothing like the make-believe trees and grass on the set. This was real.

"I love you so much, Bolt." Penny said, her voice flowing through the air, and Bolt knew she meant every word of it.

"Penny, I missed you so much. I couldn't live without you. You are the world to me." He pressed himself closer to her as they moved ever so slowly across the garden. No hurry to go anywhere. No bad guys to fight. Nothing to tear them away from each other, ever.

Something rustled in the grass, and Bolt instinctively jumped and turned, poised to attack.

"Whoa there, buddy. It's nothing. It's nothing." She reassured, stroking his back. "No more bad guys."

"Penny…" _That's right. It's not real. Everything wasn't real, but Penny is. She loves me, and that's real. _He relaxed.

"That's right, Bolty. Good boy." She ruffled his fur. For a moment she was worried he was going to be defiant again like the times in the trailer.

_It's okay, Penny. He's recovering, that's all. Give him some time._

They continued down the path slowly.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she said, gazing at the scenery around her, feeling his smooth fur in her hands. "I don't think I could've lived without you here with me."

Bolt leaned into her hand, feeling its warm caress in the cool morning.

"Penny…I'm so glad I finally found you. I wish you knew what I…what we've been through to find you."

Penny heard his voice, but knew she couldn't understand it.

"Were you out there looking for me, Bolty? Did you run because you were worried about me?" He nodded, feeling a little tug of worry in his heart.

"Where did you go? You were gone for weeks."

Bolt frowned, unsure of how to answer her.

"Oh," Penny said, realising what he meant. "Never mind. Why don't we get Mittens to act it out later? I want to ask her and Rhino about their stories too."

Bolt nodded, feeling a little less burdened. He wanted to tell Penny everything—all his amazing adventures through the huge country.

"I'm still kinda shocked that you can understand me and everything. I thought that kind of thing only happened in stories." Penny said, laughing a little. "Are you saying words, Bolt? Do you talk to Mittens and Rhino the same way we do?"

Bolt cocked his head, unsure of how things actually worked. It just did.

Penny sighed wistfully, rubbing his head once more with her hand.

"I wish there was some way for us to talk. That would be a dream come true."

_Yeah, it would._

It was quiet again as they moved on. Penny closed her eyes slightly and exhaled, feeling a new life force flowing through her.

"You know, we used to live here, a long time ago. That was when you were still a puppy." Bolt perked up.

_Really? No wonder it feels so familiar here._

"Yeah. That was more than six years ago, before we moved to Hollywood."

_It's nothing like the city. It's so quiet. I can hear everything around me: the wind whispering, the earth speaking._

Bolt moved in tandem with her, loving the fact that he no longer needed to run or be as alert as when he was on the set.

Still, Penny was his person, and he was ready to protect her with his life, even if there wasn't a threat around. But sometimes, he would feel scared; scared that he wasn't strong enough to protect her without his powers. He felt like he wasn't enough for her.

"_You don't need powers, Bolt. You can protect Penny, just the way you are." _That was what Mittens told him, and it helped to ease those fears.

Still, they seeped back into his head when he least needed it to. Doubts spread in times of reflection of his life. He wondered whether Penny was a part of it. A part of his deception. She must have known that what they were doing. Did she intentionally trick him?

_No. Penny loves me. She would never have done that. _That was what he kept telling himself. But still, the very thought scared him.

"Hey Bolty, you need to relax more," Penny said, a hand massaging his neck. She scratched him under his chin, invoking a wave of pleasure through Bolt. He murmured, his tail beating back and forth. Penny giggled.

"Looks like that spot still works, huh? Some things just don't change." She continued for a while, then did something Bolt didn't expect. She picked him off the ground.

"Oh wow, you're heavy." She adjusted her grip on him. "Ya like that, my little Bolty-Wolty?" she teased. Bolt felt a little embarrassed at hearing his puppy nickname.

_She hasn't called me that for so long. It's like we're starting our lives all over again._

With little difficulty, Penny continued down the path.

"It's amazing. The world is so big, and everywhere is so different," she remarked, amazed at the expanse of land that surrounded them. Bolt had to agree.

_It is. I can feel the world, the world I never knew. It's teaching me how to live. _

_This is life._

* * *

_I...I just can't find the words to tell him._

Unknown to Bolt and Penny, two eyes were watching them from the window of Penny's room. They watched silently, and when they disappeared from view, the owner of said eyes turned away and collapsed onto Penny's bed, letting out a sound that could have constituted a whimper of pain.

_What's wrong with me? _Mittens thought. _Why is this happening to me?_

Lying was getting harder. Somehow, her ability to conceal her emotions was failing. She wanted to run as fast as she could and bang her head against the wall, but she resisted the urge to.

"Why am I feeling like this?" she mumbled to herself painfully, staring at the white ceiling. Immediately his face pictured itself in her head, and she turned away. But everywhere she turned, there was something to remind her of him.

It _was _Penny's room, after all.

She couldn't help it. Every time she was around Bolt, especially when she looked into his eyes or saw that silly grin of his, she would feel a fluttering in her heart that would not go away. The feeling was so clear, so undeniable, and yet she didn't want to admit it to herself.

She had fallen for Bolt.

"No! That's not true! I…I'm not in love with him!"

_You're always thinking about him. You act strange around him. You become flustered when he's around you._

"He's a dog! I'm a cat! I can't possibly love him!"

But the signs were all there. There was a longing in heart, a longing for him to be close to her, for him to hold her, to feel the warmth of his body…

She shook her head vigorously.

_No…it's not right. I'm not supposed to love him._

And that had been her source of distress over the last three weeks. She never found it in herself to tell him, for fear of what he would think. For one, the naïve canine hadn't even the slightest clue what love was, other than that towards Penny. It was something—the last thing—she had yet to teach him. It was already an awkward subject enough to talk about without having her own affections for him.

And because of that, she found it increasingly difficult to talk to him normally. Every time she saw him, she could only think of her question, and what his answer could be. But she knew, deep inside her heart, that it wasn't going to work out the way she wished it would.

In the end, she found it easier to just keep away from him as much as possible, to just not think about him, and hope it would blow over quickly.

It wasn't working.

"Okay…I've got to stop thinking about this. There must be something to cheer me up…" She closed her eyes, letting the silence take over. She knew there was only one thing that could cheer her up, though.

_Bolt…_

_I wish you could understand how I feel…_

_And…I wish you could love me too…_Her mind was wandering, dreaming of what she wished would be.

"_Mittens…you…you love me?" Bolt would ask, stunned._

"_I…I do, Bolt. I do." She would blush, her head down slightly, glancing up at him hopefully._

"_Oh man, I thought it was just me. I…I think I love you too." He would follow suit, unsure what to do, just like when he didn't know how to be a dog._

"_Look, I know it's crazy, but…what? You, you love me too?" Her head jerked upright._

"_Yes, I do. I…I've loved you for the longest time now."_

And she would be speechless.

_It can't be…_

He would place a paw on her shoulder, and she would move her paw to his smiling face…

"Mittens?"

"Ah!" Mittens' paw retracted so fast she thought it would dislocate. The Bolt she saw in front of her was not an illusion or a figment of her imagination. It was the real him. Her paw had reached out and touched his face. Time seemed to stop. She didn't know what to say, or what to do.

She only knew that she had made a very big mistake.

"Um…Mittens, are you okay? You were kinda talking in your sleep…"

"Er…I…um…it's…nothing! Absolutely nothing! What are you doing here, Bolt? I thought you were walking with Penny." Her heart was beating so fast she was getting a headache.

"Yeah, we just got back. I think we were gone about thirty minutes. How'd you know we were gone?"

"I…" _What can I say? I watched you from the window? I've been observing you all the time because I'm in love with you? _

"Mittens, is there something wrong? You can tell me." He asked worriedly, taking a step forward.

_No, no, no! This is wrong! I can't tell him! Come on, Mittens, think of something!_

"Oh, you know, it's all these powerful senses of hearing and all that."

"Really?"

"Um, yeah. It's a cat thing, you know? So, what's Penny doing?" she said very quickly.

"Penny? Oh right!" He perked up, sounding more excited. "Penny got something in the mail, and it looks awesome! I wanted you to—"

"Right, awesome! Let's go!" She jumped off the bed and bounded rapidly out of the room.

"Uh…Mittens?" But she was already gone.

Bolt stood puzzled in the middle of Penny's bed. It was rare to see Mittens so flustered about anything. The problem was that he had absolutely no idea what she was flustered about.

_But, this isn't the first time it's happened…_

He wondered to himself: When did she start acting like this?

_Was it when we moved in? No…it was earlier. At the hospital?_

He flicked his ears, the equivalent of scratching his head.

_No…I'm pretty sure the first time she acted like this was at—_he paused.

_The fountains in Vegas._

He turned to the empty doorway, thoughts and questions tumbling about in his head.

_Why? What happened there that was so significant? _Something clicked.

_Of course. The home. Mittens wanted me to stay in Vegas._

_Come to think of it, Mittens still hasn't told me why she didn't stay in Vegas._

Although he didn't know the answer, with her odd behaviour and actions, something was becoming increasingly clear to him.

Mittens was definitely hiding something.

As Mittens walked—more like leaped—down the stairs, she shook her head, berating herself for allowing this to happen, and for coming up with such a lousy excuse. Had Bolt been more experienced with this sort of thing, he would have seen right through her.

_I'm so stupid! How could I have let myself get caught like that?_

She could hear Bolt's footsteps now, and she responded by quickening her pace. She needed to be as far away from him as possible now. She could not afford to tell him and risk ruining the friendship they took so long to make.

_I...I just can't find the words to tell him._

She glanced behind, checking to see where he was. Then, she bumped into something hard and rough.

"Ow!" She fell backwards onto her back. Dazed, she shook her head, as Penny picked her off the ground.

"Hey Mittens, what's wrong? You look pretty shaken up."

"Yeah, you practically ran into a large box." Rhino commented from below.

"I don't remember it ever being there…" she mumbled. From her height now, she finally took notice of the towering box in front of her. It was roughly Penny's height, which to a cat was very tall.

"Where did it come from?" she asked.

"It came from the studio. They say it's a farewell present for Penny." Bolt answered, bounding up to the group.

"What is it?"

"It's a trap!" Rhino shouted. The two turned towards him.

"Sorry, force of habit."

"Alright, let's see what the people sent me." Penny unlatched the box, sliding it open. The moment it came into the light, all four of them arched their eyebrows.

"Wow," They said simultaneously.

In front of them, stood a huge gift basket, filled to the brim with an assortment of gifts. It had a huge ribbon tied around it, and a big card stuck to the front. Written on it were the names of various people, many of whom Penny did not know.

"This is amazing!" Penny exclaimed. "There's chocolates, books…games…what's that?" she asked, puzzled. She pointed at a black rectangular box nestled right in the middle of the basket. Reaching into the basket gently, she lifted it out.

"Legend of the Spartans? Is this a movie or something?"

"No, that's impossible!" Rhino yelled, causing Bolt and Mittens to jump, which in turn surprised Penny, causing her to drop the DVD onto the ground.

"Rhino! What is it? What's with the shouting?" Bolt asked.

"This is supposed to be the movie of the year! It's not even scheduled to be released until winter! How could it be here?"

Penny finally noticed a smaller card pasted at the back of the box. She bent down and removed it, reading it out.

"Dear Penny, I'm sorry to see you go, but at the same time I'm tickled pink to know that now you can live the life you've always wanted. This is just a little present to celebrate your freedom. Come visit us sometime!"

She took a pause and grinned. "From Malcolm, your—extremely resourceful—evil villain extraordinaire."

"Calico…" Penny mused. She chuckled, before folding the card and tucking it in her pocket.

"Alright, guys, there's a ton of stuff to do. What do you all want to do first?

"Movie! We must watch the awesome movie!" Rhino cried out, trying his best to lift the DVD and parade it around Penny.

"Okay…I think that's decided. Are you two fine with that?" Bolt nodded; Mittens didn't answer.

As they settled on the couch, Bolt noticed something—Mittens was sitting at the furthest end of the couch away from him. He wasn't normally conscious of this sort of thing, but when his friend was intentionally avoiding him and acting funny, he knew something was up.

_What's wrong with Mittens?_

Whatever it was, Bolt told himself he was going to find out, one way or another.


	12. The Inspiration

**A/N:** Good Friday update. Enjoy.

Thanks to Carl Minez, kids rock, Bane767 and Mildirk for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 12: The Inspiration**

Halfway through the movie, Bolt noticed the box had a sticker on it.

"Hey, it says this movie is rated 18. What does that mean?" Bolt asked.

"I dunno," Rhino replied. "Maybe it means it has 18 times more awesome?"

Bolt shrugged, and settled into the chair as the movie continued.

* * *

_You are a Spartan._

A man sprinted through a black cavern, his footsteps reverberating across the walls and ceiling ominously.

_You are one of the legends._

He clutched a cylindrical metallic canister in his hands, making sure that it was still there. The smell of gunpowder and fire assailed his nostrils through his helmet.

_When no one else can do it, you will make it happen._

He leaped over an outcrop of rock on the ground, clearing it with ease. Through his helmet, he could see his destination, and with his heart pounding, he increased his speed. It caused his side to burn, because of a wound he'd suffered earlier. If not for the suit he was wearing, he would have died.

_No…Spartans never die._

Spartans. Specially trained humans, who were equipped with special suits, fitted with energy shields. When no other soldier could do the job, Spartans could, and would do it. Where no plan seemed to be viable, Spartans would make them happen. They were the heroes of the world. They were faster, stronger, and smarter than the average soldier. It was said that a single Spartan could take down a thousand of the enemy. They were invincible.

_At least, up to now, they were._

Aliens. A collection of multiple alien species had waged war on humanity, and humanity was severely outmatched and outnumbered. Even the Spartans, with all their abilities and combat prowess, had difficulty dealing with the new threat. Although they killed hundreds of thousands of the enemy, there were too many of them, and with the number of Spartans dwindled with every battle.

But nobody ever knew that.

According to one of the higher-ups involved in the Spartan program, if the army ever found out that the 'invincible' Spartans could be killed, morale would drop. So, they made it a rule that Spartans could never die, only go MIA.

"_Spartans never die, Lee, they just go missing in action…"_

The man—Lee—skidded to a stop. This was the place. He loosened his haversack and set it to the ground. Ripping it open, he pulled out a large metal case and set it gently onto the ground. Then, a voice crackled to life in his helmet.

"…come in…Spartan…what is your status…over."

"I'm in position, sir."

"Covenant are sending in reinforcements soon. Do what you need to do…and do it quick." The line cut dead.

_Do what you need to do._

A short message, but it carried a lot of weight for the Spartan. The cave, an ancient relic, was something the Covenant revered. If it was destroyed, it had the potential to cripple their morale. It wasn't heavily guarded at the moment where he and his men were, but word was getting out, and the enemy had started mobilizing. It was his job to plant the bomb and escape before the reinforcements got there.

A beep cut the silence, and Lee punched in the activation code. The timer flickered to life, and he shut the case. He jammed it into a niche in the wall, before sprinting off again, the metal canister still clutched in his hand. He was hoping the bomb would go unnoticed so he wouldn't have to detonate it early. He needed time to escape before that happened.

A timer in his helmet's Head's Up Display (HUD) started, indicating the amount of time before he was supposed to activate the bomb from a remote distance. The bomb was strong enough to destroy everything in the cave: the inhabitants, and the enormous relic that they so fervently revered. It had almost as much power as a nuclear warhead.

"_Lee…"_

Lee jerked up, looking around a moment. He shook his head, keeping the canister back into his haversack.

Removing his M392 Designated Marksman Rifle from his back, he loaded a fresh magazine and raised it, inching forward tentatively. Through the night vision in his helmet, he could see blurred figures ahead, firing their own weapons at his team. They hadn't noticed him yet.

Finding some cover behind a pile of rocks, he steadied himself and stared into the scope of his rifle. The large bipedal creatures strafed around, trading fire with his team. He took aim at one that was isolated and fired. The creature stumbled, and Lee put another bullet through its head. It dropped to the ground, dead.

The others still had not noticed that one of their own had been slain, and Lee took the chance to down another five of the creatures before they finally realized what was going on. Lee could hear one of them barking orders, and soon two of the creatures were sprinting towards him, guns blazing.

Lee ducked as bolts of plasma struck the rock formation, blowing away chunks of it and melting the rest. He heard a hiss, and it was getting louder. Suddenly realizing what it was, he dived away as far as could, just a second before the entire rock formation exploded in a flash of blue.

"_Lee…"_

He rolled over and fired his weapon several times, the bullets hitting the shielded target. The shields flickered and dissipated, leaving the creature vulnerable. But before Lee could deliver the fatal shot, the other alien stepped in, firing more plasma shots. Lee's suit took the full brunt of the barrage, and his shields went down completely, with some of the plasma striking his armor.

Still, he didn't flinch. He fired the remainder of his clip as fast as he could into the creature standing before him. The rifle he held was not meant to be used as in close quarters as sustained fire would severely affect its accuracy, but he had no choice. It worked anyway; the creature stumbled under the bullets, its shields gone as well.

Lee pressed the trigger once more, but nothing came out but the click of an empty chamber. He dropped the rifle and pulled out his sidearm, a M6G, and blasted three shots into the unshielded alien's head. The bullets blew part of its face away, and it slumped to the ground.

He turned his attention to the other alien, but it had already recovered and was in front of him. He discharged a bullet, but it was off target and embedded itself in the cave's wall. The alien roared as it kicked Lee in the side, sending him tumbling across the floor quite a good distance away. Although the arms and legs looked thin and frail, they had the power to break a normal human's ribcage if it made full contact. On the ground, Lee shook his head and scrambled up, realizing the pistol was no longer in his hand.

_Merde._

A hissing sound caused Lee to turn around, and only his reflexes saved him from being stabbed by a glowing energy dagger protruding from the alien's wrist armor. His hands shot out and grabbed the alien's arm, the dagger only inches away from his face. Clearly displeased at being unable to finish off his prey, the alien twisted its arms and broke free of the deadlock, raising its weapon.

What it didn't expect, was for Lee to suddenly run up and grab its neck. It roared, firing a few shots, trying to push him off. But it could only stare bewildered as Lee didn't flinch in the slightest, instead returning the favor by stabbing his own combat knife into its neck. It writhed and thrashed, but Lee held fast. Gritting his teeth, he twisted the knife sharply while it was still inside the dying alien's throat, effectively silencing it.

The energy dagger flickered off with the death of its wielder, and Lee clutched his shoulder, suddenly feeling the stinging of his cauterized wound. Ignoring it, he retrieved his pistol from the floor and headed back towards his team.

* * *

"Ew…" Bolt said, wincing at the alien's gruesome death. "Rhino, this movie seems kinda violent. Are you sure we should be watching this?"

"Are you kidding? That was so awesome!" He replied, without turning his head. "Besides, Penny seems to like it too."

Bolt looked at his person. True enough, she seemed to be enjoying the action and gore, her excited expression telling all. Bolt turned back to Rhino, puzzled.

"How did know that? Your eyes haven't left the tv at all."

"I can sense it." He replied in a deep throaty voice.

Bolt had no response, so he just returned his focus to the television, just as Lee broke another alien's head with his bare hands. He felt a little sick.

"What's wrong, Bolt?" Mittens asked, "I thought you were the tough guy, always beating up all the baddies."

"I didn't rip them to pieces…" He muttered, trying his best not to throw up while watching the rest of the movie.

* * *

Things were not looking good for Lee's team. They had taken heavy casualties, the enemy had suppressed their fire and they were on the verge of being surrounded.

"Fall back! We're getting overrun!" A marine shouted. "Ahh!" he screamed as a bolt of green plasma struck him in the arm. Before he could react, a barrage of plasma rained down upon him. He fell to the ground, his body sizzling.

"Jay!" Another marine yelled. He raised his MA5 assault rifle and fired a few shots, but it was no use; there was just too many of them for eight marines to handle.

Lee could see the silhouettes of the enemy up ahead. He primed a grenade and tossed it into the group. There was some initial confusion, and that bought enough time for it to explode, killing three instantly and wounding the rest in the explosion radius. While they were still reeling from the blow, Lee tossed another. Another two were blown off their feet, and Lee opened fire at the rest.

The remainder of his squad suddenly realized what was happening, and with new motivation, they turned aggressive and joined Lee in the attack. Another two marines fell during this trade of blows, but it was working; the alien numbers were falling.

A pink needle came slicing through the air, and it caught a marine in the shin. He gasped in horror, then screamed when it exploded, taking his foot off. Lee resisted the urge to stop firing and help the soldier; he knew his priorities, no matter how much he disagreed with them.

He reached for another magazine, only to realize he had no more.

"…_Lee? Lee…"_

Lee put his hand to his helmet. It couldn't have been, but he heard the voices. They didn't come from the radio, that was for sure.

"_There isn't much time, Lee…you have to hurry…"_

He didn't know what compelled him to do so, but he listened to the voice. Taking hold of his last grenade, he tossed it over his head, over the rock, into the darkness. There was a flash of light as it exploded. Pulling his combat knife from his waist, he leapt over the rock and sprinted as fast as he could.

The explosion bought him a few seconds, but when the aliens recovered and regrouped, all fire seemed to be focused on him. His HUD flashed dangerously red as his body took sustained needle and plasma fire, but he did not stop. One of the aliens was within range now, and he dived at it. The alien was firing at full speed, melting away the front part of his armor. Nevertheless, Lee still held on, slashing it across its chest. It stumbled, which gave him time to grab its neck and torque it backwards. The alien gurgled, slumping to the ground.

Lee's vision was blurring now, and the taste of copper in his mouth was strong. But still he did not stop for a moment. Prying the alien's plasma pistol from its dead claws, Lee opened fire at the remaining stragglers. They tried to retreat, but Lee's aim was perfect. One by one, they dropped to the ground like flies, their flesh sizzling.

"Move, move! Let's go!" One of the soldiers shouted.

"_Lee…get up, Lee…"_

Lee was delirious with pain. His visor was cracked, and most of his armor had melted away. A warning light that flashed on his HUD—which was blurred and malfunctioning—signaled that his shield regeneration system was damaged, and by the looks of it, Lee knew it was beyond repair—not that it really mattered anymore. There were arms, lifting him, moving him.

"Relax, sir. You're going to be fine."

His helmet was removed, and his suit's automatic emergency healing system activated. Biofoam was injected into the areas where plasma had touched his skin. The white foam polymer filled the space caused by several needle explosions, sealing the wound and numbing the pain, for the moment.

"_Lee…you can't stay down…get up…"_

Lee struggled to his feet, straightening himself and flexing his fingers, feeling the sensation of pins and needles travelling through his body.

"Sir, we did it. Transport's here. We can go home." The marine who reported the news looked almost unable to contain his immense relief and excitement.

Lee smiled weakly, placing a hand on the soldier's shoulder. The transport stood in front of Lee, and it gleamed magnificently in the light.

_I'm almost there…_

He removed the canister from his haversack, relieved that it was still intact. He punched in the activation code, and waited for the response.

"Sir!" Another one of the remaining marines shouted frantically, tearing down the transport and towards them. "We've got incoming ground forces heading this way! They're almost here!"

"Don't worry, corporal. We'll be gone by then. Once the beacon activates, we can—" Lee paused, staring at the canister. The words were still flashing, but it made no sense.

_TRANSMITTING…TRANSMITTING…_

It shouldn't have taken more than four seconds to activate the bomb, but the words were still there after almost a full minute. Lee knew it could only mean one thing.

"Sir? What's wrong?" The frantic marine asked.

"…I need to go back."

"What? Why?" They both demanded. Lee showed them the canister, and with horrifying realization, they understood. Lee picked his helmet up from the ground, gripping it tightly.

"We've come this far. This mission is too important to let it fail." He put his helmet back on. "If I give you an order to take off, I want you to do it, no questions asked. Is that understood?"

The two of them nodded blankly.

"Tristan, I'm leaving you in charge. Make sure you get everyone home, safe and sound."

"Yes sir." Tristan solemnly nodded. "Godspeed, sir."

"Godspeed." With that, he turned and dashed back into the cavern. The two marines watched him go, his footsteps slowly fading as he disappeared into the darkness.

_You are a Spartan._

Lee raced through the cavern, the metal canister still clutched tightly in his hand.

_You are a legend._

He passed dead bodies, both human and alien.

_Spartans never die._

He finally reached the site where he planted the bomb. He opened the case and punched in the same activation code. He waited impatiently, until a convincing beep sounded, and the countdown began. Five minutes.

He stepped away from the bomb and rushed back towards the ship. But before he could even take three steps, he stopped. On his motion tracker, he saw _hundreds _of red dots moving towards him. And they were moving fast.

"_Lee…run…Lee…"_

In the shadows, through his night vision, he could see the enemy. This time, it wasn't just the bipedal creatures. There were insect-like buzzards flying above them in a swarm, and surrounding them were a few floating purple creatures, with tentacles swaying about their body. They were so numerous that they blotted out the ceiling.

_No…_

He knew the buzzards could fly fast, and if they went after the transport, it would be essentially dead. As for the purple creatures, they were technological geniuses. They could take apart and put together weapons in blinding speed. A few of them could repair damaged ships in a matter of minutes. If they found the bomb, they could defuse it, and it would be all over. He couldn't lead them to the transport, and he couldn't let them find the bomb. Which meant he only had one option left…

_I'm sorry, guys…_

"Corporal, are you there?" Lee said, radioing the ship.

"Yes sir."

"Take off. That's an order. I need to stay behind."

"Understood, sir." There was a brief pause. "And sir? It's been an honor."

"Likewise, corporal. Now go." Lee cut the line. He placed the bomb in his haversack and zipped it up.

Like a man humbled before God, Lee stood in front of the incoming wave of enemies. He had no way to kill all of them by himself, but he wasn't going to let it end there. He was going to finish this. He opened a folder in his HUD, which listed his team and their status. He scrolled over his name, and changed his status to MIA.

_You are a Spartan. And Spartans never die…_

The hostile forces were moving forward towards Lee. They had received reports of human forces that had infiltrated their sacred ground, and they had been sent to exterminate them. The leader, one of the tall bipedal creatures, was burning with fury when he heard the report.

_How dare these filthy creatures desecrate this holy ground!_

He gripped his weapon—a sacred weapon, given to only the highest ranking of his kind. It was a two-pronged energy sword, and it could cut through bodies with ease, due to its melting nature.

When he saw Lee, he stopped, along with his army. They pointed their weapons at Lee, who was just standing there, hands firmly by his side, holding his combat knife. He ordered them to hold position, and then walked up to Lee, his sword shimmering. The alien knew that killing a Spartan single-handedly would give him fame and recognition beyond belief.

_I will kill this human and bring glory to the ancients._

Lee raised his knife, hoping that his body could survive long enough before they realized he was stalling.

_I can't let them find the bomb…I've got 5 minutes…_

The alien lunged at Lee. He ducked beneath it, twisting his body and kicking the alien in the side. It had little effect, and the alien grabbed his neck with its left hand, raising his sword with the other. Lee grabbed the alien's left arm, pulling the alien to his face, where he duly elbowed it in the face. The alien's split-jaws opened as it roared, throwing Lee off him. Lee scrambled to his feet, barely avoiding another lunge. He slashed with his knife, and the alien's shields flickered, but otherwise did little to hurt it.

_3 minutes…_

Everything was blurring for Lee now. The ground seemed to be moving, throwing him off balance. The sword nicked him in the side, causing him to stumble backwards. The alien grinned, as if pleased to have wounded his prey. Lee strafed around, trying his best to avoid a face to face confrontation.

_2 minutes…_

The alien charged again. Lee tried something similar, by ducking beneath it, but this time the alien saw the move coming. It shifted its legs so Lee couldn't get contact with them. Lee anticipated this as well, and awkwardly twisted his body to stab the alien in the shin, piercing through the shield and armor. With a roar, the alien fell on his knees, but did not collapse.

_1 minute…_

Lee was fading now. Things were becoming almost unrecognizable, and he knew he'd lost too much blood, even with the biofoam sealing most of his wounds. He struggled to his feet, but he was slow. Too slow.

The alien grabbed Lee forcefully by the throat and pulled him off, with the knife coming out as well. For a moment, they met eye to eye.

Then, it drove the sword into Lee's torso.

"_Lee…"_

He gasped as his internal organs started burning and cauterizing. Mercifully, the sword didn't penetrate enough to destroy the bomb. Lee's grip on his knife loosened, and it fell to the ground. The alien breathed in front of his face, and roared in victory to the rest of the army, who cheered in the wake of his victory.

"You have failed, human. Your army has perished, and now you are going to die." The alien hissed, ready to plunge the sword all the way in.

Lee couldn't understand the alien's words, but the translator in his helmet fixed that problem. Like so many before him, he knew his time had come. He looked the alien in the eye, laughing.

"Die? Didn't you know? Spartans never die."

Corporal Tristan was seated in the back of the transport, looking blankly at the remainder of his team. He never saw the white light, but he heard the explosion. He closed his eyes, and for the first time in 15 years, he crossed himself.

_It's over. It's finally over._

* * *

"That…was…beyond awesome." Rhino said, stunned.

"Wow…that was a great movie." Penny said, clearly pleased. "Nice choice, Rhino." He beamed proudly.

"What did ya think, Bolty?" Penny asked, turning to him.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Bolt replied, his head swaying. He looked green in the face.

"Oh, come on, Wags. It's just a show. It's make-believe, remember?" Mittens said, rolling her eyes. Rhino continued ranting excitedly.

"But it looked so realistic! Remember the scene where he blew the alien's face off, and all the blood and brains started flowing like—"

"Rhino…please…stop…" Bolt thought of the same scene, and he felt like hurling.

"Sorry,'' Rhino said, sheepishly grinning. Something was rolling around in his head, and he liked the idea the more he thought about it.

"I think I've found my inspiration," he said suddenly.

"What?" Mittens and Bolt asked.

"I've found the inspiration I've been looking for. I want to be like the Spartans."

"You want to be a Spartan?"

"Yeah, I want to live my life like them. I want to be able to defy the odds and do something nobody else can do."

"Um…Rhino? Didn't they all die in the end?" Mittens said.

"Yeah, I guess. But I wouldn't mind that if it meant that I could be remembered as a hero."

"What exactly _are you _going to do, Rhino?"

"I dunno. I'm sure I'll figure out something eventually."

_Yeah…I'm sure I'll figure out something. Everybody's got something, including me._ He didn't know this, but it would only take a day to figure it out.

He thought of the notion for a moment, and he had to chuckle.

_Rhino…the Spartan._


	13. Keeping The Dream Alive

**A/N:** Thanks to Mildirk, Bane767, Aronim, and Bolt Lover for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 13: Keeping The Dream Alive**

Bolt's eyes opened, almost as if they were programmed to. Something was wrong. Looking around, he discovered the problem. It was the lack of one black, sarcastic cat. How he managed to sense she was not there, he did not know.

He slipped off the bed quietly, being careful not to wake Penny or Rhino, and then disappeared down the stairs. The house was completely dark, with the exception of a few rays of moonlight coming in through the windows. Bolt couldn't see very well, but he moved on anyway, searching for his missing rather, the friend who was avoiding him.

He combed the living room, climbing onto the sofa, checking behind it, even looking on top of the television. But she wasn't there. He moved to the kitchen, checking the underneath the table, and on top of the stove. He knew he was getting desperate when he looked into the fridge.

"Where did you go, Mittens?" For a moment, his mind faltered, and he imagined Mittens had run off somewhere by herself.

He gulped and doubled his search rate. But it was still fruitless. She wasn't in any of the places he thought she would be.

_Why did she have to be a black cat? _He thought, panic rising. He exited the front door and squinted into the darkness. Was she out there somewhere? The garden wasn't particularly big, but at night it seemed like an endless void. He gulped, but sucked it up anyway. He wasn't going to let her disappear.

"Mmph…" A muffled sound caught Bolt's attention, causing a spike in his heart rate. He turned, facing random directions, the fear almost radiating off his body. He couldn't see clearly, and there were shadows and figures all around him, moving.

_It's just nerves, Bolty. Don't let them get the better of you!_

He heard the sound again, and he spun, facing the house's front door. The sound was coming from one of the chairs that sat on the porch. Tentatively, he moved towards it, his body tensing up more with every step.

A small figure was scrunched up below the chair. Bolt squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look at what the figure was.

He took a step closer, and realized who it was. He finally allowed himself to breathe easy. But with the relief came a sudden feeling of worry, and sadness.

_Why is Mittens sleeping here all by herself?_

He watched her sleeping form. She was shivering slightly, and she was trying to curl up into a tighter ball, probably to keep herself warm. Bolt felt a sick feeling in his stomach, watching his friend put herself through something like this. He raised a paw, about to wake her, but retracted it again. From what he experienced the last few days, he concluded that it was probably not a good idea.

Mittens shivered again, and Bolt felt a stab through his heart. He couldn't stand it any longer. Being as careful as possible, he padded over next to Mittens and slowly lowered himself next to her. Then, he shifted himself so Mittens was pressing against his side.

He didn't know whether Mittens knew what was happening, but she seemed to give a positive response. After a while, she shifted, her head resting on his side, and her body slowly uncurled and relaxed. The sounds of discomfort were gone, replaced by the sound of her steady breathing. Bolt sighed, feeling slightly better. He brought his head onto hers, pushing her closer to him.

_Mittens…I wish you'd tell me what's on your mind…_

With that thought, he slowly crossed the threshold into sleep, the two of them nestled comfortably against each other.

* * *

_Mmm…This feels really nice. Penny must have given me a pillow to rest on._

Mittens pressed even closer into her cushion, eyes still closed. She wrapped her hind legs around the soft material, feeling the warmth of it spreading around her body.

_Oh yeah…that's it…that's the spot…_

She yawned, slowly cracking open her eyes. Morning sunlight greeted her warmly, and she stretched her front paws.

"Morning, sleepyhead," a cheerful voice said, next to her. She turned to see Bolt's face smiling down on her.

"Morning, Wags," she replied. It took her five full seconds to realize—exactly—the position she was in. She was nestled into Bolt like he was her own personal cushion.

_Uh-oh. _

"So, I guess it worked?" Bolt asked, curiously.

"What did?" Mittens said, trying her best to maintain her composure.

"You looked kind of uncomfortable last night, so I thought I'd keep you company. You look much better now." He smiled an innocent doggish smile, something that sent Mittens spiraling down into a vortex of emotions, mostly panic.

"Um…Bolt…I…I…" Her face had just turned a deep shade of red, which was still largely unnoticeable to Bolt.

"Oh, come on, Mittens. It's only been two minutes, and you're acting like that again?" His smile disappeared. His ears drooped sadly.

"Bolt…I…I'm sorry…" she buried her head into his side, feeling nothing but remorse, regret, and pain.

"Mittens, tell me what's wrong. Please." His face bore the saddest expression Mittens had ever seen, and it was crushing her. She wanted to tell him so badly. But she was scared. She was just too afraid of what would happen.

But then again, she couldn't leave him like this. She couldn't leave him worrying about her forever. She knew that eventually, she'd have to tell him.

Eventually.

"Bolt, I just haven't been feeling too good lately, and—"

"You're not well? Do you need to see the vet?" He was already scrutinizing her from head to paw.

"No, Bolt, I don't. It's just, er…it's another cat thing. It'll pass soon. I just need some time alone, that's all. But thanks for staying next to me. Really." She nuzzled him under his chin. Bolt still looked unconvinced.

"…Okay. But Mittens, I want you to let me know if there's anything wrong. You know I care about you."

"Alright, Wags. Alright." She smiled. When Penny called, he motioned to Mittens, but she shook her head, saying she needed a moment. Bolt nodded and scampered off. When he was gone, she brought her head to the ground, broken inside.

* * *

"The pledge?"

Mittens shook her head, raising her paws over her head.

"The umbrella shelter?"

Another shake of the head. Mittens, clearly as frustrated as Penny, sat down a moment to think. After breakfast—which she somehow managed to pull through unscathed—Penny sat down with the three animals and continued where she had left off the day before: questioning them.

This time however, it wasn't going as well as she planned.

"Wags, do you have any ideas?"

"I'm not sure, Mittens. How do you act out 'New York'?"

"Well, the statue of liberty didn't work. What else describes New York?"

"Well, there were really tall buildings, and the people were moving about fast."

"I don't think that's going to help us much, Bolt."

"Apple!" Rhino suddenly blurted.

"Apple?"

"Isn't New York called the 'Big Apple'?"

"That's right!" Mittens said. She was surprised Rhino was the one who came up with an answer. She ran off into the kitchen, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl on the counter with her teeth, and returned to the living room, setting the apple at Penny's feet.

"An apple?" she asked, puzzled. Mittens nodded, placing her paws on the fruit, then stretching her arms in an outward motion.

"You were raised on an apple farm?" Mittens gave her a 'where the heck did that come from' look. Penny twirled a strand of her copper hair, trying to think of what Mittens was trying to say.

"Apple…apple…" she stared harder at Mittens, who was still making the same motion.

"Wide apple? Tall apple? Big apple?" Mittens nodded vehemently.

"Big apple? What does that have to do with any—" she paused, something clicking inside her head.

"New York!" she shouted out incredibly loudly.

"Penny!" her mom shouted.

"Sorry." She brought her voice down. "So, is it New York?"

Mittens nodded, sighing in relief. That was one problem out of the way.

Penny seemed just as pleased. "So Bolt went to New York to try and find…me…" She did a double take.

"Wait…what in the world were you doing in New York!" she exclaimed.

"PENNY!"

"Sorry, sorry!" she slapped herself on her forehead. "Bolt, you were in New York?" he nodded.

"But, that's all the way across America!" she forced a whisper. "How did you even get there?"

Mittens opened her mouth, but then closed it again, thinking of how to explain.

"Wait, wait." Penny pulled out a small book from a shelf and flipped it open. She laid it on the floor.

"Here. We were here." She pointed at California. And, you said you went—" Mittens pointed immediately at New York, all the way across the map. Penny looked to Bolt and Rhino for confirmation, hoping that it wasn't true. Unfortunately, it was.

She was bewildered. Everything she thought was wrong. He hadn't simply gone looking for her a few blocks away. He'd gone off and somehow ended up about 2000 miles away.

"How?" she said, struggling to keep her voice down to a whisper. "I mean, that day, when you disappeared…you ran all the way to New York?"

Bolt immediately shook his head. He raised his paw, but like Mittens, he suddenly realized the stark truth of the situation. He placed his paw back down.

_There's just too much to explain._

"Bolt, I don't think we can tell her everything." Mittens said, a faint trace of fatigue seeping into her voice.

"We have to try, Mittens. There's no other way."

"Look Bolt, it's already getting harder to explain things to her. I don't even know how to say you bonked your head on a window and got flown to New York. We still have to tell her how you met me, and Rhino. It's just too much."

Bolt looked somewhat defeated.

"We also have to explain how we managed to get back to California." Rhino added.

A silence fell amongst the group. Penny seemed to feel the collective sigh of defeat surrounding them. But before she could say anything, her mom walked into the room.

"Penny, you know you're starting school tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, I know, I know." She wasn't in the mood for talking about that. "I'm going to get a drink," she said tiredly, walking out of the room.

"What are we going to do, Mittens?"

"I don't know, Bolt. I don't know." She sighed, lying down on the carpet and resting her head on her paws. For the first time in a long while, she had run out of ideas.

At that moment, Rhino jerked upright. Something had presented itself to him. Something he'd never thought about…until now. He couldn't believe he was even thinking about it. It was crazy to think he could do it alone, and he knew it.

And yet, the more he thought about it, the more he felt that he should at the very least, give it a try. It he could make it work, it would be the biggest accomplishment of his life.

Without Bolt or Mittens noticing, he quietly exited the room. They didn't see him for the rest of the day.

"Can you explain that again?" Bolt asked, half puzzled, half bewildered. He was trying to change the subject.

"School, Wags. It's called school. It's where people go to on normal days. Penny has to go too."

"Why?"

Mittens thought about it a moment.

"Actually, I have no idea. But don't worry, Bolt. It's full of people. She'll be fine."

"It's full of people?" Bolt palled. Images of her being surrounded by Calico's henchmen swarmed his head. It was instinct, really.

"No, no! That's not what I mean!" Mittens said, waving her paws frantically. "It's just people her age. They go into the building in the morning, and come out in the afternoon."

"Um…how long is that exactly?"

"About 8 hours."

"WHAT!" Disbelief was written all over his face.

"Would you relax?" Mittens said, grabbing his face and giving it a few shakes. "It's like they're going to the supermarket, but just a little bit longer."

"Can I—"

"No, you can't follow her, Wags. Schools have something against animals too."

"But I—"

"No."

"It would just—"

"No."

Bolt lowered his head in defeat. There was just no winning the system.

"Cheer up, Bolt. What did you do when you were waiting in the trailer for Penny?"

"Stand at the door and guard it."

"Oh." She did a mental head slap. "Well anyway, she'll be gone then. I'm sure you can find some way to amuse yourself."

"How?" he asked skeptically. "You don't play with me much anymore. You used to play games with me when we were looking for Penny."

"I…" Mittens stood stunned. It was true; she hadn't played with him much, for obvious reasons. She bit her lip inconspicuously. She needed to draw attention away from herself. She needed him to think nothing was wrong with her. For that to happen, she would have to do what she had been doing—specifically, play with him…normally.

"Alright. I'll play with you tomorrow." Bolt brightened immediately.

What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

Penny downed the last of her orange juice. She swirled the melting ice cubes remaining at the bottom of the glass, feeling a little melancholy. She wondered with all her might, how Bolt could have ended up all the way across the country. The mystery of where he went had deepened tremendously, and her not being in the know made her immensely annoyed.

She left the glass in the sink and headed to her room. She needed to at the very least, prepare some materials for school tomorrow. It was something she had mixed feelings about, truth be told.

She told herself to push those thoughts aside—there was no point worrying over something she had no control over. Opening her cupboard, she unceremoniously yanked out a brand new backpack—another gift from the studio—and tossed it onto her bed.

"What do I need to bring?" she wondered out loud. She thought about it for a moment, then shrugged. She had absolutely no idea, so she forgot about it and went over to her laptop, turning on the power.

She sighed, watching the evening sun crawl across the sky as the computer started to power up. She drummed her fingers on the keyboard somewhat impatiently, listening to the steady hum of the fan. But then, a different sound caused her to stop.

It sounded like the flipping of a page in a book. It didn't bother Penny too much, until there was a thump, and a scratching sound. She stood up, glancing towards a small stack of books in the corner of her room. They were old books, dating back to when she was about 4. She hadn't cleared them out yet.

_Do we have rats?_

She inched towards the sound, almost like she was sneaking through Calico's base again. She peered over the stack.

"Rhino?" she said out loud, puzzled. He was sitting alone, totally engrossed in something. He didn't notice her.

Penny sat down next to him. This got his attention, which made him look up.

"Hey there, little guy. What are you doing?" she got a better look at what he was doing. At first, she was puzzled. Then, as she looked at what surrounded him, she gasped, suddenly understanding.

"Wait, are you really trying to…?" Rhino nodded. Penny's eyes widened.

_Impossible! He can't possibly…actually, why not? This…this could work!_

"Alright, let me give you a hand," she said excitedly.


	14. Tears and Rain

**A/N: **I shall make no excuses. Sorry for the late update.

Thanks to Dragon's Savior, Aronim, Mildirk, Mike101, dogman15 and Bane767 for reviewing the last chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 14: Tears and Rain**

5.30a.m. Some would call it an ungodly hour to be up. Still, Bolt was awake. He sat by the door to the house, eyes pointed towards the dark hallway, unmoving. He could not sleep. Two things were running through his mind. He was quite sure of one, but not sure in the slightest of the other. They swirled around, probing, looking for answers.

And so he sat…and waited.

* * *

"How long has he been there?"

"About two hours."

"You think he's okay?"

"Well, you _are _going to be gone a long time."

"I know," Penny said, sighing. "I know." She strode over and sat next to him, tousling his fur. He looked at her sadly.

"Come on, Bolt. You know I have to go."

He still looked unconvinced, staring silently at her.

"I'll be back soon. I won't leave you again."

He looked down slightly.

Penny pulled him into her arms, pressing him down on her and cooing softly. Finally, Bolt let out a sound; he whimpered quietly.

"It's for eight hours. We'll have the afternoon and night to spend together, okay?"

Slowly, reluctantly, he loosened his tight limbs and fully embraced his person. This was the hardest thing he'd done since letting her leave the trailer, although leaving Mittens and Rhino came in a close second.

"That's right…" she released him from the hug. "That's my good boy. And I'll be back before you even know it." She brought out her Polaroid camera and snapped a photo of them.

"Bye, Bolt." She kissed him on his head, then walked out the doorway, towards the waiting school bus. She stepped up the bus, but before she entered fully, she took one look back at her precious companion and waved. Bolt raised a paw in return, a small sad smile on his muzzle.

He could see other people on the same vehicle. With all his power, he scanned their faces. They didn't look too dangerous, at least. He was confident Penny could handle them if they were to turn violent. Penny chose an empty seat somewhere in the middle and sat, exhaling calmly.

The wheels of the bus slowly turned, and it threw up a cloud of dust as it drove into the distance.

* * *

Mittens sat in the middle on the garden, eyes closed. She was completely still as far as the eye could see, except for her slowly rising and falling chest. If you didn't know better, you would think she was asleep. The wind blew around her, tickling her fur. Still, she was unmoving. It was as if she was in a deep meditation.

Then, her eyes opened.

In one graceful motion, she leapt forward a good few feet, just as Bolt leaped onto the place she was just standing on. She turned around slowly, a calm expression on her face. Her collar jingled.

"Nice try, Wags. But you're still too loud. I could hear you a mile away."

"This isn't easy…" he sighed. "I thought I was doing it right when I did it on tv."

"You were. But you forget—in real life, people aren't as oblivious as the henchmen you fought."

"They weren't that bad."

Mittens raised an eyebrow.

"Okay fine, they were that bad."

"Yup. Ready to try again?"

"Yeah…" he half-heartedly replied. He turned, looking at the road for a while before looking back at Mittens. She cocked her head curiously.

"What's wrong, Wags?"

"It's nothing."

"You're thinking about Penny, aren't you?"

He sighed. "Yes."

"Come on, Wags, don't be like that. You can't stick to her forever. She needs to build a life for herself, and that means she'll need to go out into the world."

There was a long silence.

"Yeah, you're right, Mittens," he admitted.

"Yes I am."

"I just feel like I'm not doing enough for her."

"Bolt, Penny just needs you to be her dog. That means making her happy when you see her. Nothing much more than that. I'm sure she's quite happy with what you're doing right now."

There was another long silence.

Mittens could sense she was losing him. She needed to pull him back.

"Hey, you know what?" she suddenly said.

"What is it?" Bolt asked, looking at her.

"Oh, it's nothing." She innocently looked up at the sky.

"What is it?" Bolt pressed. She continued grinning, whistling a short tune.

"If you wanna know, you're gonna have to catch me first." She winked. He grinned back.

"You're on."

* * *

Penny's room was quiet, with the exception of the ceiling fan turning slowly. Rhino sat next to the window, letting the sunlight shine on his work. Penny had given him a task to do, and he was determined to accomplish it before she returned from school.

He smoothed out his fur, making a dramatic show of it to his invisible audience.

_I need a break._

He immediately turned to the tv in Penny's room. Old habits seemed to die hard. He switched it on. As it warmed up, he thought of what he was doing. He knew it was crazy, but somehow, it seemed like the only natural thing to do.

Learn.

He'd heard about it before. There were some animals who could learn to read and write, effectively communicating with humans. Rhino had never actually met anyone who could write. Mittens could read a little; it was mostly because of that skill that they made it through America, what with all the signs and maps. But it pretty much ended there. Writing was a whole different story.

He'd only thought of the idea after remembering a documentary he'd watched about half a year back in the trailer park, because he was too lazy to switch the channel. It was an animal documentary, and he remembered the person on the screen gushing about his findings.

"_Extraordinary! These creatures are beyond anything we've ever imagined!" The blonde man stood in front of the camera, his face way too close to the lens._

"_It's been unknown for the longest time now, but these animals can actually understand and interact with us, just like we do with each other!"_

_The film then scrappily cut to a video clip of a small blue bird, sitting alone on a desk. It looked like someone had recorded it with a cell phone camera._

"_Come on," a voice coaxed in the background, "you can do it!"_

_The bird frowned, picking up the pencil on the table with one of its talons. The bird tapped it thoughtfully on its beak. Then, it seemed to have a revelation. It hurriedly scribbled on the piece of paper, and the camera unsteadily shifted for a better view._

_Amazingly, the bird had just written a full sentence in English, and signed its name there to wrap it up. It looked at the camera, beaming._

_The film was cut, and the face of the man returned._

"_I thought it was just a hoax at first, but then I went to interview that very same bird and its owner, and I realized it's all true. It's incredible! The bird actually understands every single thing we said!" he took a sharp breath, before continuing._

"_This phenomenon is not well known to many people. Perhaps not all animals are able to perform at such a level. It turns out that the bird was a rare species of macaw, and they happen to be very smart to begin with. But it is unknown how much intelligence is needed for them to perform such a feat."_

"_But if this is possible, then perhaps…" the camera zoomed in._

"_Perhaps, we can unlock a new level of communication with animals." The screen went black._

No joke, Rhino thought. _We're playing charades with them._

He had been extremely skeptical of the entire tv show from the moment he watched it. It was horrible quality film, and the show was patchy, leaving more questions than actual answers. But after hearing Leonardo's story, suddenly it seemed more plausible than he gave it credit for.

And that was why he was doing this now.

He didn't know whether he qualified as having enough 'intelligence', but when he picked up a book for the first time in his life just yesterday, he actually didn't find it to be complete gibberish. He actually understood what the book was saying. Granted, it was a picture book for children, but it was still an accomplishment for him. It was working. Everything seemed to come naturally for him.

_Why is it that I've never tried doing this before? It's so easy._

With Penny's help, things progressed even faster. She would read out words he didn't understand, and explain what they meant. She actually left him a dictionary to help him. Rhino was excited, at least until he realized he had no idea how to use it.

Still, he was learning to read faster, slowly but surely. And after that, he would learn to write.

_Bolt and Mittens would be surprised, _he thought. If he could do this, it would mean no more difficulties. Bolt could tell his story, and everything he wanted to say. He could already imagine the implications of his actions.

He laid back and sighed, dreaming of the praise and fame he knew he probably wasn't going to get. There wouldn't be any reporters, nor would there be any excitement. Not in this quiet part of America.

Mirthful laughter entered through the open window, and Rhino gazed outside. He saw Bolt and Mittens chasing each other, laughing away while they rolled and tumbled about the ground. He smiled at the sight,

Then something sparked in his head. He stared a little closer from the second floor. Something…something was unusual about the two of them. Perhaps it was the tv serial he watched last night, but something was familiar about the show, and what was happening between Bolt and Mittens.

He scratched his head, unable to place it. He decided to forget about it and go back to work.

* * *

Mittens drew a sharp breath as Bolt nearly nicked her in the side. She scrambled backwards to distance herself from him. She saw the confident—but not cocky—look on his face, and she knew she was in trouble. As always, he learned quickly. He was reading her movements, testing her. The tables were turning.

Mittens locked her gaze with his, circling slowly around him. He watched her vigilantly, making sure she couldn't disappear back into the grass without him knowing. She stopped. His tail jerked. Her eyes widened.

He lunged.

Mittens was quickly losing her cool, although from the look on her face, you wouldn't be able to tell. Her movements were becoming a little slower now, and she just barely avoided being pinned by him by springing to the side. She shuffled backwards hurriedly, the first signs of panic showing.

Bolt noticed that, and he grinned. His prey had been rattled. He had the advantage now. He continued pressuring her, running, pouncing, cornering.

"It's over, Mittens!" Bolt shouted commandingly. "There's nowhere left to run!"

"Really? This isn't over yet," she shot back coolly. Then, she bumped into something hard. In the open field, Mittens knew instantly what she had stumbled across. The barn wall. Bolt had backed her against the barn wall. She had fallen right into his trap. He was watching, moving in time with her. She couldn't make a break without him easily intercepting and pinning her.

"I'd say it's pretty much over," Bolt said, smiling. "You still haven't won a fight with me yet."

"First time for everything," she mumbled. Looking around, she could see old drum barrels and wooden crates stacked on top of each other. She immediately leapt on top of one. This was the only skill she could beat Bolt at.

One by one, she raised herself higher, giving herself more room to maneuver. She was completely focused on her footing; a slight miscalculation in her distribution of weight would cause the entire stacking to collapse.

She paused for a moment, preparing herself for the final jump. This one would take her to the roof, and Bolt would never catch her there. She was about to leap…

…when suddenly, there was a crack.

Although there were so many other things that she could have thought of, only one entered her mind.

_The last time this happened, I ended up in a very awkward position. _She gulped. _Wait, then that means—_

Before she knew what was happening, she was airborne.

There was a very soft impact, and suddenly she found herself on the ground…with Bolt pinning her to it. He had leaped and caught her in time, just as the barrel collapsed. He stood over her, seemingly enjoying the moment.

"See? I told you I got you." He grinned childishly.

"Ha ha, very funny."

"So, what was it you wanted to tell me?" he asked.

"Nothing really. Just wanted you to have some fun." Bolt smiled widely at this.

There was a moment's pause. Then, he did something she didn't expect.

He licked her on the cheek.

Everything seemed to slow. Her heart stopped, as did everything else. The moment was there, captured in her mind forever.

_He just…licked me. He's never done that before._

She was taking in deep breaths, smelling his scent all around her. She stared into his brown eyes. He was smiling. Oddly, he looked like he was rather embarrassed by what he just did. He shuffled a little, releasing his grip on her, allowing her to stand. Slowly, she got up, her eyes never leaving his.

"Bolt…"

"Thank you, Mittens. Thank you so much for playing with me. I had a lot of fun."

"I had fun too, Bolt." Something burned inside of her.

This was it. It was now or never.

"Bolt?"

"Y-yes, Mittens?" he asked, a little startled.

"Do you remember…you asked me why I came back for you at the studio?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Well, I think I have my answer." _Three words. Just say three words, and it will all be over._

Bolt's ears perked up. He looked more fidgety than ever.

"Bolt, I think that I…I…"

"Penny," he whispered.

"What?"

"Penny! Can you hear that, Mittens? It's Penny! She's back!" He leapt off towards the sidewalk. Sure enough, the yellow bus was approaching.

"That's…great…Bolt…" she said, fading away towards the end. He didn't hear her.

He was only a few feet away, but Mittens suddenly felt all alone. A realization was starting to dawn upon her.

_This is never going to be._

What was she thinking? She was a cat, and he was a dog. A relationship would be impossible. And besides, he would never think of her as more than just a friend. To him, she was probably just one of his best friends, nothing more. His heart belonged to Penny. He didn't need her.

Her eyes were locked on him, and she was in total torment. Slowly, she backed away towards the barn, the smallest tear falling onto the grass.

Nobody noticed it.

"Hey, Bolty!" Penny called as he bounded up joyously to her. "You look well. I told ya you'd be fine." Bolt yapped cheerfully.

"You know, I've been thinking about something." Bolt perked up; anything Penny did was bound to be good.

"Whaddya say about going down to the river today? We can have a little picnic there."

Bolt barked happily, jumping all over her.

"Oh—hey! You must have really missed me, huh boy? Hold on, let me get changed, and then we can go." She headed back towards the house.

Bolt watched her go. He was about to follow, but then he stopped. Something clicked in his head.

_Where did Mittens go?_

He looked around the garden. It was deserted.

Mittens was gone.

* * *

"_What?"_

"_I love you, Bolt."_

"_You…love me?" he was stunned beyond belief._

"_Yes. I do."_

"_But Mittens, I'm a dog, and you're a cat!"_

"_Well, that's true, but…"_

"_I…I really don't know about this Mittens." He backed away._

"_No, Bolt, wait! Please!" But he was moving further. She was getting further. She was being sucked away from him._

"_Bolt!"_

Mittens snapped out of her depressing reverie, crying. Nobody would hear her crying alone in the corner of the barn. She never cried; she was too tough for that. At least, up to now she was. Not even hunger or the realization of being abandoned brought her even close to a tear. But now here she was, letting the tears flow like a river.

_All because of a stupid white dog._

She let herself surrender to the pain. There was no point in fighting it. She just let in sink in wholly, letting it consume her. Everything felt so wrong. Loving him was wrong. It would never work out. Everything she wished for was just a dream. She was chasing an illusion, a fantasy.

_He never loved me, and he never will._

She kept telling herself that, and it hurt more every time she said it. She didn't care. She was going to find her comfort in her pain.

She pictured his face, and felt it stabbing her already broken heart. She told herself to stop thinking about him. She wished she'd never met him. She wished she'd never followed him after he rescued her. And most of all, she wished she'd never fallen for him.

"I need to leave," she whispered to herself. "I need to get far away from this place."

"Mittens?"

She gasped, turning just as another tear fell from her eye.

* * *

**A/N:** It's coming.


	15. Calling Out Your Name

**A/N:** This chapter is dedicated to two people: my former General Paper teacher, who has decided to move on after being a relief teacher for my class for 5 months. Although the time we spent together was short, I have learnt much, not just about the subject and the English language, but about life. I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to him.

And to my father, a man who has stood by me and believed in me even when I didn't. He is my inspiration, and although he won't be reading this, I would like to thank him for his incredible support. Happy belated Father's Day, dad.

Thanks to Aronim, Bane767, mildirk, Dogman15, Splatman, and Mike101 for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 15: Calling Out Your Name**

_No…this can't be happening. Not now._

Mittens had always considered herself unlucky. People told her it was because she was a black cat. She didn't want to believe them, but they were right. Her life had been unlucky for the most part. She couldn't say she had the happiest of childhoods, and being declawed and abandoned definitely counted as unlucky.

And now, this.

Yet another failure to add to the pile of misery. A failed attempt at love, which wasn't even right to begin with. And to top it off, now she had been found out. The figure was unmistakable, and it was definitely not who Mittens wanted to see right now.

"Rhino! W-what are you doing here?" she furiously rubbed her eyes, trying to clear away the tears.

"I saw you running in here by yourself. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It's nothing," she lied.

"It doesn't look like 'nothing' to me. You don't look 'fine' either."

Mittens said nothing, turning away. She knew it wasn't 'nothing', but she didn't want to tell him about it.

"What's wrong, Mittens?"

"Rhino, you…you wouldn't understand."

"Is this about Bolt?"

Mittens winced. _Bingo, _Rhino thought. He'd hit the nail on the head. It was by chance that he noticed Mittens escaping into the barn. He'd heard Bolt's jubilated cheers at Penny's arrival home, and he looked out of the window, just in time to see a black cat slinking into the barn he had been in just a few days ago.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked softly.

"I…I can't talk about it," Mittens said. She wanted nothing more than to leave. Rhino looked back outside. Bolt was running around the garden like a headless chicken. Rhino could tell he was looking for her.

He wanted to know what was going on. He had enough of being in the dark about things that went on around him.

Without a word, he got behind the barn door and pushed. It creaked a little, before slowly closing shut. Mittens' eyes widened.

"Rhino!" _Why? Why did he…?_

"Bolt's outside, and he's looking for you. I don't think you'll be able to leave so easily."

Mittens was tempted to gasp and demand how he knew that, but she settled for silence. She knew she was trapped.

Rhino paused a moment, thinking of what to say. He was Rhino. He wasn't one for small talk or conversations that involved emotions. But one of his two best—only—friends was hurting, and he wasn't going to sit around and do nothing about it.

"You shouldn't keep it bottled up inside. It hurts, you know."

"Why do you care so much, Rhino?" Mittens said, slightly bitter. Rhino was unmoving.

"…You never abandon a friend in a time of need."

Mittens fell silent again. Rhino knew he was close. He just needed to push her a little more. He walked beside her and sat, the same way she did for him before.

"This is where I went after you spoke to me that night. The night you told me Bolt's powers weren't real." He let it sink in a little. "You cheered me up when I was down. I want to do the same. Let me help. Tell me what's wrong, Mittens. Please."

Mittens felt the pain and tears building up inside her. Keeping her feelings buried inside was killing her. She was tired. She just wanted to pour out everything: all her pain, all her sorrow. But Rhino…he wasn't exactly the ideal person Mittens wanted to talk with about her problems.

_Forget it. He should know, even if he hates me for it._

"Okay."

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, feeling like a person who was about to make a decision. A decision that would be life-changing. With all her resolve, she let go of her inhibitions and said the words slowly, word by word.

"I…like Bolt."

There was a heavy silence that fell between them. Mittens thought it was going to crush her.

"You…like Bolt," Rhino repeated.

"Yes." Mittens felt so ashamed. Rhino frowned a little, scratching his head, a puzzled expression on his face.

"What's wrong with that?"

Mittens blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"Everybody likes Bolt. What's there to be sad about?"

Mittens was stunned, completely lost. It took her a few seconds before she finally understood, and she gave herself a mental head slap for not realizing it sooner. What was she doing? She was talking with _Rhino, _of all people.

"Um…Rhino? When I say I like Bolt, I don't really mean it like that. I mean…it's…well…remember that show Penny's mom was watching last night? The thing…that happened between the two…main…characters…" she trailed off, her face beet red.

Rhino cocked his head, remembering the show vaguely. He wasn't one for mushy love stories, although he knew about it and watched it when there was really nothing left to watch on tv.

"So that means you love Bolt?"

Mittens cringed inwardly; she didn't expect him to say it so bluntly. She lowered her head, pawing nervously at the dirt.

"Y-yes…" Rhino raised an eyebrow.

"So that means you want to be like the people on that show? Hug him, kiss him, have him take you in his paws and—"

"Okay, okay! I get it, I get it!" she looked down, blushing furiously. "Yes."

"That's fully awesome!" Rhino grinned. "So have you told him yet?"

Mittens thought she was dreaming.

"Rhino, you're okay with this?" she asked in disbelief.

"Why wouldn't I be? Sounds pretty normal to me."

"Rhino, you think a swarm of parasitic creatures taking over the world is normal."

"That was last time. Besides, what could be wrong with you loving Bolt?"

"Everything! He's a dog! I'm a cat! We're two totally different species!" she exclaimed.

"The magic box shows that kind of thing all the time."

Mittens sighed.

"Rhino, the magic box—"

"—Is more real than people give it credit for." He interrupted. "I know love is strong, and that it transcends all boundaries. You shouldn't let any physical differences stop you from having a relationship."

"Where did you learn that?"

"An advertisement for Burger King."

If she didn't feel sad, Mittens would have laughed. Rhino had an uncanny ability to make hilarious—yet surprisingly sensible—statements.

"So why are you sad, Mittens?"

Mittens wiped away the last traces of tears from her eyes. Although, coming back to the point was starting to make her tear up again.

"Because…Bolt doesn't love me."

"He told you that?"

Mittens shook her head sadly.

"Did you tell him?"

Mittens hesitated, saying nothing.

"You didn't tell him yet?" Mittens shuffled uncomfortably.

"…No," she finally said.

"Then how do you know if he loves you or not?" Rhino exclaimed incredulously.

Was she really talking to Rhino? Action and awesome-obsessed Rhino? She was too tired to care. Sniffling, Mittens recounted the events that happened in garden a few minutes ago.

"And…he's got Penny. He…he doesn't need me," she said, her voice cracking slightly. "I…I don't know what I'm thinking. I know it's crazy. I shouldn't be feeling this way at all."

Rhino was sympathetic, something that really surprised Mittens. For someone who wasn't good at listening, he was doing a pretty good job. He tapped his chin thoughtfully.

"I think you should tell him."

"But…"

"Bolt is your friend. I don't think he'll ever hate you for any reason. He's too awesome for that. And besides, you don't really know how he would feel about this. Maybe he feels the same way."

Mittens highly doubted it.

"I think you'd be an awesome mate for Bolt. He would be lucky to have you."

Mittens knew he was just trying to cheer her up, but she appreciated it. A small, sad smile crossed her lips, and she reached out and grabbed him, hugging him tight.

"Thanks, Rhino."

"Hey, don't get too close. I don't want to be contaminated by you, wily beast of a thousand evils."

"Right," she laughed, letting him go.

It felt so weird, hearing all this from Rhino. Mittens thought she was suddenly going to wake up, and everything would be back to the way it was. Unfortunately, she knew she wasn't dreaming. Rhino knew now.

Soon, he wouldn't be the only one.

"Mittens! Mittens! Are you in there?" Both of them turned to the barn door, where Bolt was pounding wildly outside.

"Mittens!" The banging increased in frequency now.

Rhino turned to Mittens.

"I think he deserves to know how you feel about him."

Mittens gave a wan nod, the fear quickly returning to her. She stood up and headed towards the door, taking one last deep breath. She looked at Rhino. He nodded. She turned back to the door.

_Alright, I can do this. _She placed her paws on the heavy wooden door.

Bolt knew he heard something from inside the barn. There was nowhere else Mittens could be. He'd already checked the garden, and the house's interior…including the fridge. She had to be here.

"Mittens, open up! Please!" he begged. Something had risen inside of him, and it was causing him to panic.

The door did not budge. Bolt wondered how Mittens could've sealed it shut. Or had it closed in on her? Either way, he wasn't going to stand around doing nothing. He stepped back, before charging forward, fully intent on forcing it open, or breaking it down. He leaped.

But just before his head made contact, the door swung open. Bolt yelped, trying to stop, but inertia had taken its toll. He almost literally flew through the door and tumbled three times before crash landing in a pile of hay. The world was spinning. Bolt shook his head, trying to refocus. Hay was caught in various parts of his fur. He couldn't brush it off.

A shadow approached him. He looked up. Mittens glanced quizzically at him.

"Hey Wags, what happened? You look terrible." She smirked. It soon dissolved into a warm, sincere smile. She stepped forward and licked him on his cheek, the same way he did not too long ago.

"I heard we're going for a picnic by the river?"

"Um…yes?" Bolt replied, uncertain. Mittens had never licked him before either. He was surprised at how rough her tongue felt.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Rhino called from the front of the door. "Penny's waiting for us. Let's go!"

"Wait, how did you get here Rhino? And why is Mittens here? And…and…" he stammered, unable to process his thoughts in the slightest.

"Relax, Wags," Mittens said, placing a paw on his head and brushing away some hay from his fur. "I'll explain later. And…I have something I want to tell you." If Bolt had looked a little harder, he would have seen her blush.

"Okay?" he replied, uncertain. Mittens smiled and walked out of the barn. Bolt slowly got to his feet and trotted over to the door.

"Rhino, what's going on?"

"The last twilight has fallen. The galaxy burns around us. The terrans have been consumed. We are all that stands against the shadow. But if we are to meet our end this day, we shall do so AS ONE!" he continued his little rant, waddling out of the barn. Bolt could only stare.

"What the heck is going on around here?"

* * *

The afternoon was mildly warm and windy, and the river was deserted. Only trees and grass surrounded the running water. Penny stepped closer to the bank and dipped her hand in. The water was clear and cooling. She smiled.

"Looks like we picked a great day to come here," she said to the three animals. They nodded approvingly. She loosened her backpack and set it on the ground, loosening her own shoulders as well. With that settled, she pulled out a picnic mat and laid it in a clearing, directly below a large tree. Its branches stretched outwards, more horizontal than vertical, providing plenty of shade. Mittens and Rhino sat down on the mat, while Bolt went off to inspect the river.

Penny flopped down on the mat, sighing in sweet repose. As this time one month ago, she would have been sitting through yet another pointless interview. But no more. Now, she was free to enjoy her life with Bolt, Mittens and Rhino.

_Rhino._

She sat up, remembering suddenly. She'd left some work for Rhino to do. He was sitting near the edge of the mat with Mittens, already helping himself to one of the chocolate wafers from her backpack. She crawled over to him.

"Hey, Rhino. How's everything?"

Mittens looked at Rhino curiously.

"What's she talking about, Rhino?" Mittens asked.

Rhino didn't respond to Mittens. He frowned, tapping his chin. He looked around the vicinity. He didn't bring any materials with him. The chocolate was already partially melted from being in Penny's backpack too long. He got a flash of inspiration. He dipped his front paw into the melting chocolate wafer and coated his paw with the brown sticky substance.

Penny watched intently. Mittens raised an eyebrow. She wondered what in the world Rhino was trying to pull. Was it some kind of magic trick?

Rhino moved his paw steadily for a while before turning the wafer so that it was now facing Penny and Mittens. The moment he did, Penny clasped her hands in delight, while Mittens' jaw dropped.

It was better than magic.

The chocolate coating some parts of the wafer were gone, indicating Rhino had traced his paw through it. Rhino stood proudly next to his work. Two characters had been drawn into the chocolate.

_OK_

A simple, yet amazing answer. Penny praised him, rubbing her hands on his head. Mittens, still in shock, could only stutter her words out.

"R-Rhino? But how?"

"I learnt." That was his simple reply.

"You learned how to write?"

Rhino turned the wafer over and wrote 'Yes'.

Mittens could read the word crystal clear. It was another blow to her gut. Rhino, the smallest one of the group, the one she and Bolt looked past most of the time, had just gone and pulled off something they couldn't, and pulled it off brilliantly.

"Rhino, that's amazing," Mittens whispered.

"Thanks." He beamed back. He took a bite out of the wafer, licking his paw clean of the chocolate. Penny was still staring in amazement at what remained of the letter written on the wafer.

Rhino glanced over at the river, where Bolt was pawing at the water surface. He turned back to Mittens.

"So, are you going to tell him now?"

Mittens sucked in a sharp breath. She knew she was running out of time…and excuses.

"No, not yet." Rhino frowned disapprovingly.

Mittens tried to explain. "I don't want to do it in front of you and Penny. I think I should wait a while, bring him somewhere quieter, by ourselves. Then I'll tell him."

"You'd better not back out this time," Rhino said.

_I sure hope not, _Mittens thought.

Bolt inspected the water, watching it flow past him into the distance. After a while, he turned back towards their little 'encampment' and bounded up towards Penny. She playfully pulled him closer.

"Heya, Bolty. Want something to eat?" Bolt's stomach rumbled, and he sheepishly grinned, nodding.

_Wow, she seems extremely happy all of a sudden. I wonder what happened._

She dug around in her bag and pulled out some cream crackers.

"Right. Let's play a little after this. What do you say?"

Bolt yapped approvingly, biting into his biscuit.

5 minutes passed, but it passed slowly. The calming sound of running water was the only sound that filled the mildly warm afternoon. Penny typed a message idly on her phone. Bolt sat next to her, waiting for her signal to play. But truthfully, he was wondering about Mittens, and her words. She said she had something to tell him? He wondered what she would suddenly want to tell him out of the blue. She really had been acting weird lately. Maybe the two were linked?

As if on cue, Mittens walked up to him.

"Bolt?"

"Hmm?" he said, startled out of his thoughts. "Oh, Mittens. What's up?"

"Come on, I wanna show ya something."

Bolt hesitated, but only for a second before getting up and following her. Penny looked up at Bolt's sudden departure. Bolt motioned towards Mittens. Penny seemed to get it, nodding and returning her attention to her phone, her fingers moving about the touchscreen. Bolt jogged to catch up with Mittens.

She didn't go far off. About ten meters from their encampment, Mittens stopped and sat on the bank, inviting Bolt to sit with her. He did. They both stared a moment at the running water, watching the clear blue liquid flow past. Finally, after a while, Bolt found his voice.

"Um, Mittens? You said—"

"Yeah. I did." Mittens looked at him. He'd never looked more perfect to her. She could feel her heart rising, lifting her, pushing her to say it out. Although she couldn't see him, she knew Rhino was watching from somewhere. She felt like a thousand eyes were watching expectantly, waiting for her words.

And she was determined to say it this time. But she wouldn't rush it. She was going to play it slow.

"I wanted you to see this." She pointed towards the river.

"But Mittens, we've already seen rivers before when we were looking for Penny."

"Not the river. Look there." Bolt looked again, past the river, and gasped. He wasn't able to see it where Penny was because of the trees, but now he could. A vast expanse of land stretched out before him, purely green. Calling it beautiful was an understatement.

"Mittens, it's…" he turned to her, mouth hanging open slightly. "…beautiful."

Both their tails swayed at that moment. If Rhino were there, he would definitely have called it a sign.

"Yeah." Mittens said softly. "Just like the fireworks in Vegas."

One second of silence. It felt like eternity to Mittens.

"Vegas…" Bolt murmured. Memories flashed before his eyes like a slideshow. He smiled at the memories. "Yeah…it is. It is."

"There's something I've wanted to tell you for a long time, Wags. Ever since we watched the fireworks together."

"Wow that's a long time ago. What is it?"

"Hey Bolty! You ready to play?" Penny called.

Mittens' heart started sinking like a stone. Was this really happening again? She wasn't sure she could take another blow like that. But Bolt didn't go. He turned, yapping as if to say 'Hold on a minute' and turned back to Mittens.

"So what did you want to tell me, Mittens?"

Her heart skipped a few times, to the point that she felt like fainting. He was listening to her, one hundred percent. Nothing stood between them now. No more doubt, no more hesitation.

"Bolt, I…I like you."


	16. So Far Gone

**A/N:** Wow. This is the most number of reviews I have gotten so far. Thank you all for all your wonderful support. I really appreciate it.

This chapter is dedicated to my great grandmother, who turns 89 on Sunday. She has taught me much about life, and for that I am eternally grateful. Happy birthday, great grandma.

Thanks to Mildirk, Aronim, Bane767, Splatman, Mike101, dogman15, angelrock444, Yera, Arkazu, Carl Minez, and Jynxed Keyboard for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 16: So Far Gone**

There are many ways to describe life. Some are positive views, while others are negative views. Some people live their lives as if every moment was their last. Others go through the motions, apathetic and uncaring about the world around them. But most people, be it optimists or pessimists, can still agree on one fact about life.

It's always unpredictable.

* * *

Bolt didn't know what to expect from his best friend, but he could say he didn't expect the few words Mittens said.

"Bolt, I…I like you."

He had no immediate noticeable reaction to the words. He blinked once, then twice. Something inside him told him there was more meaning to Mittens' words than he thought. They didn't discomfort him, but it sure sent some strange vibes through his body.

"Mittens? You…like me?" Bolt asked, slightly surprised.

"Y-yes…"

Her candour, unfortunately was lost on him—he didn't get the true meaning behind her words. Still, his heart started beating a little faster. He had no explanation for it. His nerves were on end, and he felt jumpy. Mittens continued, albeit a little nervously.

"I…I know its sudden, but I want you to know. I think I've felt this way ever since we went to look for Penny. In Vegas…no, not just Vegas. During the three weeks we spent together, my feelings for you…they changed. I felt happy. You made me smile and laugh. You helped me see life again. With you, I've felt happier than I've ever felt before."

She looked up, and Bolt stared straight into her emerald green eyes. She smiled a little awkwardly.

"I didn't know I would…or could, but when we watched the fireworks together, I knew it was true. I…I think I've fallen for you."

Bolt had no reply. His only reaction was a subtle blink of the eye. From what Mittens could see, Bolt had absolutely no idea what she was talking about. She sighed, knowing she would have to explain it to him. It was the weirdest—and most awkward—thing she ever had to do in her life. She was going to explain the concept of love to her naïve best friend, and then say she loved him. It wasn't exactly the most normal of confessions.

While Mittens was thinking of a way to explain, Bolt was scrambling to organise his muddled thoughts.

_Wait, what's going on? She likes me?_

Normally, whenever there was something he didn't understand, he would ask Mittens immediately. But this time, he felt hesitant to do so. He had no idea why, though. The usually straightforward cat's hesitation seemed to make him hesitant himself.

"Bolt?" she asked, uncharacteristically timidly.

"Um…" That was the only thing he could utter at that point. He was completely, utterly discombobulated. That was what Mittens had been getting worked up over for so long? She had avoided him, acted funny, jumped whenever she saw him coming…the list went on.

_All because she wanted to say she liked me?_

It made no sense to him at all: she never told him, but he had his suspicions that she liked him after she started warming up to him. It wasn't terribly difficult to guess. So why was she making such a big deal over it? He liked her just fine too.

He paused a moment. Something distant had sparked in his mind. But before he could process his thoughts any further, Penny let out a sharp yell of surprise. They both stopped and turned.

"Penny!" Bolt yelled immediately.

"Ow…Don't worry Bolt, I'm fine," she laughed. She was on the ground, apparently having tripped over her untied shoelace. She shook her head and got to her knees, brushing some dirt off her elbow in the process. She eventually got back to her feet and smoothed out her jeans, before she stopped abruptly. Rummaging through her pockets frantically, her eyes darted quickly about.

"Wait, where's my phone?" she exclaimed. It took her a while, but she finally spotted it teetering precariously at the edge of the riverbank. She dashed forward and reached her fingers out, grabbing it just before it fell into the water. What she didn't expect though, was that the phone was slightly wet from hitting the mud by the bank. When she grabbed it, it slipped right out of her hands and into the water with a plop.

"Ah! My phone!"

Something deep within Bolt fired up suddenly. Seeing Penny in trouble—well, sort of—had activated an old instinct. The old unforgotten instinct of protecting his person at all costs. Without a moment's hesitation, he dashed towards the bank next to Penny, newfound adrenaline coursing through his veins.

"Hold on Mittens, I'll be right back!"

_This is my chance! Finally, I can help! Hold on, Penny. I'll get your phone back!_

"Bolt! Wait!" Mittens yelled. But he had already jumped.

Chilling sensations spread across Bolt's body as the water engulfed him. The voices of Penny, Mittens and Rhino could no longer be heard clearly. He could hear only their muffled chatters coming from above, and the sound of water filling his ears. He couldn't see very well underwater, so he had to strain his eyes to look for Penny's black android phone. He was determined to retrieve it before surfacing.

_Relax_ _Bolty, this is just like that time you sneaked into Calico's underwater base. What was it Penny told me? Hold my breath, and don't panic, or the oxygen will run out faster._

He stopped searching for a moment, thinking to himself.

_Come to think of it, what is oxygen?_

He shook his head and told himself to ask Mittens later. He only knew that if he stayed in the water, he would die. Penny had made that crystal clear to him.

Thankfully, enough light was shining through the water surface, lighting up the river just enough for Bolt to see. He imagined the direction of the phone dropping in, and looked around that area. He paddled towards a cluster of green water plants which grew out of the riverbed. It was like a thick mess of green-coloured hair. He was about to ignore it, but a flash of light caught his eye as he swam past. It glinted, reflecting the sunlight, drawing Bolt to it.

_The phone!_

Sure enough, it was Penny's phone, somewhat suspended in the middle of the maze of thin swaying tendrils. He propelled himself towards it, but when he got closer, the tendrils shifted, and the phone sank a little further in.

He frowned, going deeper down. In one calculated move, he pushed himself towards it and snatched it up in his jaws before the moving currents picked it up. He held it in his mouth triumphantly, careful not to swallow any of the water that seeped into his mouth. Penny warned him about that too.

He twisted his body, ready to push himself to the surface. He kicked, but he only moved a few inches before he jerked to a stop. There was pressure acting on his hind legs. Still gripping the phone tightly, he twisted his head back to see what happened. Some of the tendrils had caught on his leg, preventing him from moving. He tugged harder, but the plants were firmly anchored to the riverbed.

The more he struggled, the more he felt the plants closing in around him. A sudden surge of panic coursed through him. His chest suddenly felt tight. His head felt heavy. Instinct told him to breathe, but he was quite sure it wasn't a good idea.

_I'm stuck!_

Penny's words were forgotten; he started thrashing and writhing about the chains that held him prisoner. It only succeeded in getting more tendrils entwined around his body and front paws. His heart beat fast, demanding oxygen which was not being supplied. He tried untangling himself, but he couldn't focus long enough. He couldn't even tell which way the water surface was anymore.

_Have…to…make it back…_

With one final effort, he pushed, as hard as he could. He moved a few inches, the tendrils pulling taut, but that was it. They didn't break.

He was still stuck. He was trapped. Alone. Underwater. The gravity of the situation suddenly hit him.

He was going to die alone underwater.

The fear nearly consumed him. He didn't want to die. He'd faced 'death' a hundred times before from gigantic ray guns, electrical traps, armed henchmen…and didn't bat an eyelid. And now he was going to be killed by a simple water plant. He did not find the irony amusing.

Strangely, before he passed out, he could have sworn he saw himself, sitting with Mittens, Penny and Rhino on the house's porch, staring at the sunset. Then, everything went black.

* * *

Penny, Mittens and Rhino stood in tense silence at the bank of the river. They exchanged uneasy glances after a minute went by. After another thirty seconds, Penny dashed forward and jumped in.

"Penny!" Mittens and Rhino yelled. It was another whole minute of silence before she finally broke the surface, gasping wildly, Bolt's limp body in her arms. Both Mittens and Rhino's blood ran cold at the sight.

"Bolty! Come on Bolt, speak to me…" Penny grunted, her mouth half filled with water. Only her upper body was above the water. The water wasn't running extremely fast, but it was still flowing, and without purchase, Penny struggled to resist the flow of water while keeping Bolt's heavy body from going down under again. He was unconscious…at least that was what Penny hoped.

In any case, his body was deadweight.

"Rhino! What should we do?" Mittens yelled, frantically thinking of a way to help them without actually having to make contact with the water herself.

"Quick—help me grab the cloth!" He got to the edge of the picnic mat and pulled. Mittens joined him, and they tugged it free from under the weight of Penny's bag.

Dragging it to the bank, they paused a second, before Mittens gripped it firmly with her paws. Rhino stood at the edge, eyes pointed intently at Penny.

"Thirty degrees northeast, prepare for launch," he said firmly.

"What?"

"Point it a little to your right."

"Right," Mittens replied.

With a grunt, Mittens heaved it into the water, grabbing it by a corner as it went in. Penny started propelling herself closer to it—albeit awkwardly, with Bolt in her arms. Mittens pressed down hard on the corner, firmly anchoring it to the ground. She hoped it would hold while Penny pulled herself closer.

"This _is _how they saved drowning people on the magic box, right?" Mittens asked nervously.

"Most of the time," Rhino said. "They'd usually use a rope though."

"What happened after they threw it in?"

"Well, usually there would be a massive wave that would wash the victims away before they reach, or a massive river beast rises and devours everybody in the water…"

"Okay, I get it," Mittens said, palling slightly. She unconsciously looked back upstream.

"Hold on Bolt, I'm gonna…get ya…out of here…" Penny grunted as she released one hand's grip on Bolt's limp body to grab the floating cloth in the water. She tugged at it, and she could feel the resistance as she moved closer to the bank.

_Almost…_

For a moment, her grip on Bolt faltered, and he came dangerously close to slipping under the surface, but at the last minute, Penny reaffirmed her grip on his waist, barely hanging on.

Bit by bit, she inched to the surface. When she finally made it to the bank, she gasped, grabbing on to the blades of grass. She hoisted Bolt up onto solid ground.

Bolt was only half conscious. His body felt heavy and turgid. He took in shallow breaths, each more tired than the last.

"Bolt! Are you okay?" He heard the words, but they barely registered. He inclined his head, to see Mittens and Rhino worriedly looking at him. He felt so much pain. It wasn't physical pain. That had long since evaporated. No, the pain was emotional, and it cut deep into his soul.

_I couldn't help. Again. I couldn't do anything at all._

With that depressing revelation, he slipped into unconsciousness, using the last of his energy to suppress his tears.

* * *

"_Bolt! Search and destroy!"_

"_I need some help here, Bolt!"_

"_Yeah, you're my good boy. I know I can always count on you."_

"_I know you've always got my back."_

Bolt woke up abruptly, gasping for air. He didn't realise he had been holding his breath. The first thing he noticed was that he was on Penny's bed, alone. He shivered, feeling the cold morning air blow through the window. It was 7.30 in the morning. 15 hours had passed since the river incident. He shook his head and glanced down at his paws, flexing them just to make sure he was alive.

_It's just a nightmare._

He only had nightmares a few times, some on the way to find Penny, others a few days after the fire. He would wake up, terrified, and it would take a lot of comforting from Mittens before he would finally calm down. This particular nightmare, however, was more terrifying than the rest.

The nightmare always began the same way. He would be swimming in the water, and then something would reach out and grab him, dragging him to the bottom, where he would drown. It was pure terror. And every time, he would abruptly wake up, panting irregularly. That had happened 8 times over the last 15 hours. He whined softly, feeling the pain clutching his throat.

Suddenly, he heard voices arguing from outside Penny's room. His ears strained to hear the conversation beyond. It wasn't clear, but it seemed like Penny was speaking with her mom about something. He heard Penny sigh after a while, and then he heard the door closing.

There was only silence after that. Putting the pieces together, Bolt assumed Penny had left for school. Thinking of Penny made him wince. The nightmare scene flashed in his head again. He shook his head and stared at the empty ceiling, feeling the dull ache in his muscles. He found energy to flex his paws, but that was all. He couldn't do much else. Eventually, he decided to just stay still and let his mind wander.

Unfortunately, the only thing that accomplished was to allow the nightmare to keep replaying in his head, and each time, he would cringe more. He couldn't remember everything that happened while he was being rescued, but he remembered enough. His chest tightening, his vision blurring, Penny having to jump in and save him herself…

_No Bolt. Stop thinking about it. Stop thinking about it._

Bolt blinked, forcefully tearing himself away from his forlorn thoughts. He couldn't help it. The thought of failing so badly was so emotionally painful it was almost like someone had driven a nail through his heart. As if to accentuate his sorrow, a mocking voice echoed in his head.

"_Bolt? The super dog? What kind of super dog are you? You can't even save yourself!"_

"No Bolty, you're not a super dog. You're just a normal dog. You're just a normal dog…" he kept repeating to himself.

"_You may not be good at being a super dog, but you can't even be good at being a normal dog! You failed Penny! She had to save you!"_

The blow hit Bolt harder than he thought it would. It was true. He was the one who needed to be saved. The one time he could help Penny, he failed, and she ended up having to pull his semiconscious body out of the water.

"_You know it's true."_

Bolt turned away. Suddenly, he heard soft footsteps approaching. He quickly relaxed his body and went limp, trying to play dead, or unconscious, in this case. There was a sudden shift of weight on the bed. Bolt resisted the urge to shift his body as he felt a paw being placed on his shoulder.

"How long have you been awake?" A voice softly said. Bolt knew the jig was up. He waited a few seconds before slowly opening his eyes, to see Mittens looking at him comfortingly.

"Mittens…" he mumbled. Seeing her sent a wave of sadness and guilt through his body. He didn't want her to see him like this. Weak. Vulnerable. The next few words he wanted to say were caught in his throat, and all that came out were short unintelligible murmurs.

"It's okay. It's okay. You're fine," she cooed. Bolt's voice showed the first signs of cracking. He didn't want to show his weakness to her, but he couldn't help it.

"I…couldn't help her. I couldn't."

"Everybody makes mistakes, Bolt. It's natural."

"She had to save me, Mittens. I mean, I've always…I've always been the one helping her."

Mittens didn't know what to say. She wanted to cheer him up, but it seemed like everything she could say would only make him feel worse.

"I'm sorry, Bolt…"

"No, I'm sorry, Mittens. I let you down. I let Penny down. I…it's my fault."

"It's not your fault. Nobody could have seen that coming. You did your best."

"My best wasn't good enough," Bolt snapped. The anger disappeared as fast as it came, though. His ears drooped once again, and he looked sadly at Mittens.

"I'm sorry…" he whimpered.

Mittens lay down next to him and pressed herself closer to his body. Bolt didn't know why, but he felt a sense of comfort in her touch, like something had filled the hole that had been torn in his badly damaged heart.

"It's okay."

"I couldn't protect Penny. I…I couldn't. What am I, Mittens? What am I?"

"You're Penny's dog, Wags. And you're my friend."

"I almost got you killed, so many times. I don't deserve to be your friend. Maybe it would be better for everybody if I just left."

Mittens playfully batted his head.

"Come on, Wags. You don't need to do that. We're perfectly happy with you being here."

Bolt didn't respond, his scepticism showing.

"Look, I think you should get some _real _rest, and you'll feel better when you wake up. It always works."

"Can you stay with me?" he asked. Mittens nodded, pressing herself deeper into him. Bolt laid his head down onto the bed, hearing Mittens' breath and feeling her heartbeat in time with his own. It somewhat soothed him. This was the first time he'd ever asked her to do something like that. She didn't seem to mind, though.

"_You're crazy, man!"_

Bolt jerked upright, hearing Mittens' sharp voice. He looked at her.

"What's wrong, Bolt?"

"N-nothing," he replied.

"_You're crazy! Stay away from me!"_

He suddenly realised the voice he heard was only in his mind. He recognised the words almost immediately. Those were Mittens' words when she 'accompanied' him on his journey to find Penny.

"Are you sure you're okay, Bolt?"

"I'm fine," he lied.

"_You've got nothing! No super strength, no superbark…and no heat vision."_

Bolt knew it was true. He didn't have any of them. But the words were not what unnerved him. What unnerved him was why Mittens had said those words. It was when they were captured by animal control. That was his fault. Mittens had almost been killed shortly before that.

That was his fault, too.

"Hey, you know, I think I've got something to make ya feel better. Wait here for me, okay?" Mittens said. Bolt nodded silently. Mittens licked him affectionately under the chin before jumping off the bed. It cheered him up, but only for a moment. Once she left, the depression started sinking in again.

_Mittens…_

He twisted and turned, thinking of her words. He wanted to be useful. He wanted to know that he could make a difference to the people around him. But everybody had been finding ways to handle things on their own. Penny had gone off by herself to school, Mittens had settled down comfortably on her own…heck, even Rhino didn't need him anymore.

Struggling, he pushed himself to his feet and lowered himself down to the floor with a soft thud. His legs felt like jelly, and he thought they would give way any second. He shrugged it off and padded towards the door.

As he approached the ground floor, the muffled sounds of the television grew louder. Bolt could probably have guessed who was watching it. He turned towards the living room, his eyes still half-closed. His tail dragged limply behind him, his large ears drooping flat on his head. One didn't need to be an expert on dogs to see that something was bothering him.

_There must be something I can do, _he kept telling himself. _I can still be useful._

He was about to turn the corner to the living room, but stopped short when he heard voices speaking. His drooping ears perked up like radar dishes, twitching and twisting, trying to hear the conversation beyond more clearly.

"Rhino, I think you should turn down the volume a little. I don't want to disturb Bolt," Mittens said.

"Is it that loud?"

"_THIS. IS. SPARTA!" _The tv yelled.

"Okay, I'll turn it down."

Bolt chuckled a little, but it didn't do much to cheer him up. His head was still lowered. He wanted to move, but his paws wouldn't. It was like they were stuck to the floor. His ears twitched again as the two continued talking.

"Did Bolt say anything about you?" Rhino asked.

"No…I think he's still upset over the whole…you know. I mean, I know he's trying to help, but I think he needs to learn that we don't need him to help like that. He's just going to hurt himself if he goes on like this."

Bolt froze, a chill running down his spine.

_Mittens…you…I…_

He didn't want to hear any more. He felt like his heart had iced over and shattered.

"_They don't need you."_

It was as if something had taken hold of him, and wouldn't let go. He turned and padded silently into the kitchen. He bumped into the fridge once, before quietly leaving through the back door.

* * *

Memories passed slowly through Bolt's mind. Everything important in his life rolled by his eyes, reminding him—painfully—of everything he'd been through. Every single detail did not escape him. It was odd that he could remember things so clearly in such a period of turmoil in his life.

_Nobody needs you._

The first memory to go by was the most blurry, but the most heart-wrenching. He watched as a young Penny picked him up and pressed his puppy form to her chest and grinned.

"_You're cute," she giggled. "Yeah, who's a good boy? Who's a good boy?"_

The image dissolved. Now, he saw an older Penny, walking next to him on an empty gravel path. She ruffled the fur on his head.

"_Heh. You like that, my little Bolty-Wolty?"_

But then, she stopped. A yellow bus pulled up next to her, and her hand slowly left Bolt's head. She started walking towards the bus.

"_Penny?" _She ignored him and kept walking.

"_Penny! No! Wait! Please don't go!"_

He tried to run after her, but something caught his leg. He turned and saw a familiar tendril wrapped around his leg. It hissed at him. Bolt snapped back, growling, but it only served to unleash more tendrils that wrapped around his body, encasing him. He fell onto his side, and saw Penny getting further and further, not looking back.

"_You're useless," _the tendril hissed._ "Penny doesn't need you. She never did. You let her down. You couldn't save her in the fire, and you made her risk herself for you in the river," it scoffed, disgusted._

A sudden throb of pain lanced through Bolt's head. He stopped and looked up, only to embarrassingly realise he had walked straight into the barn's wall, next to the place where he and Mittens played together just yesterday. Thinking of Mittens sent an even more painful lance through his heart. Mittens, the cat whom he'd trusted explicitly…and mistreated. She'd gone out of her way to teach him to be a dog, and she'd come looking for him all the way in the hospital when he was unconscious. What had he done for her?

_I hurt her, dragging her across the country. I almost killed her. And now, she's still worried about me._

He hung his head remorsefully, lowering his body to the ground. He stayed like that for a while, staring at the blank barn wall. He thought deeply, wondering how he could make himself useful again. He had to find a purpose for his life. But he couldn't think of anything. He sighed dejectedly and stood up.

He never expected what happened next.


	17. It's Not Too Late

**A/N:** This is it. 9 August. The 46th birthday of my country, Singapore. This chapter is dedicated to you, my home.

Thanks to Bane767, Splatman, Mildirk, Aronim, Mike101, dogman15, Arkazu, and last but not least, Carl Minez for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 17: It's Not Too Late**

"_You are the same person as you were two years ago, and you will be the same person in two years' time. Your appearance, your personality may change, but deep down inside, you are who you are, and nobody—that's right, nobody—can tell you otherwise."_

Mittens and Rhino never knew Bolt was just around the corner, listening to their conversation.

"No…I think he's still upset over the whole…you know. I mean, I know he's trying to help, but I think he needs to learn that we don't need him to help like that. He's just going to hurt himself if he goes on like this," Mittens said.

Bolt froze, a chill running down his spine.

_Mittens…you…I…_

He didn't want to hear any more. He felt like his heart had iced over and shattered.

"_They don't need you."_

It was as if something had taken hold of him, and wouldn't let go. He turned and padded silently into the kitchen. He bumped into the fridge once, before quietly leaving through the back door.

Back in the house, Mittens and Rhino continued talking, unaware of Bolt's departure. Mittens picked up Mr Carrot in her teeth up from the couch, the rubbery orange toy letting out a happy squeak.

"I don't know, Rhino," she said, with Mr Carrot between her jaws. "I don't think Bolt's okay. He's taking this really hard…" she sighed. Rhino sat back in his ball, nodding thoughtfully.

"I suppose it's natural. He believed he had superpowers his entire life. It hurt him when he found out the truth. He never wanted to accept it at first when you told him, probably because he felt that if he accepted the truth and gave up on his powers, he would feel helpless and vulnerable. It hurt him that he couldn't be a hero in our…well, _your_ eyes."

Mittens felt the guilt stab her heart.

"The fire didn't help, either. He almost couldn't save Penny, and I think that really affected him. He still feels an obligation to protect us and Penny. It's not very obvious, but he probably still feels that way now. And, there was yesterday…" Rhino trailed off.

"I can't bear to see him like this, Rhino. I'm not going to let him blame himself for what happened yesterday. I'm going to do something about this."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to remind him who he really is." She squeezed Mr Carrot in her teeth. _It's not going to be easy, though. _

"He's really dedicated to his 'protector' role," Rhino commented. It was exactly what Mittens was thinking.

"I guess it's his pride. He's Bolt, after all." Mittens offered.

"And that's why he's fully awesome," Rhino pointed out, chuckling. He cocked his head, thinking for a moment.

"You know, he kinda reminds me of someone I saw on the magic box once. He went through something like what Bolt's going through."

"Uh-huh," Mittens said, not really listening. She was trying to think of what to say to Bolt. She had to pick her words carefully. She started towards the stairs, but halfway there, she halted, feeling a chill. Something Rhino said unnerved her. She knew he had an uncanny ability to know how things played out.

"Um…Rhino? What happened to the guy on the magic box you were talking about?" Rhino tapped his chin.

"Well, he decided to leave his hometown, searching for his purpose in life. People scorned him, so he left, in search of somewhere he would belong. Somewhere that he would be able to—" Rhino stopped, realising Mittens was no longer there.

Mittens bounded up the stairs as fast as she could, still clutching the orange rubber toy in her mouth. It couldn't be. He wouldn't. But then again, he was Bolt. If anyone was likely to do something like that, it would be him.

"_Maybe it would be better for everyone if I just left…" _that was what he had said.

_No, he wouldn't, _Mittens told herself._ He's probably still on the bed, waiting for me to come back._

She burst through the door, and let out a sigh of defeat. He was gone.

"Bolt…no, you can't have." She swept her eyes across the room, looking for the white canine. Something caught her eye out of the window, and she leaped up to the windowsill to see. It was Bolt.

_Bolt!_

She jumped off the windowsill and raced down the stairs as fast as her legs could carry her. Without stopping to explain to Rhino, she dashed out of the house.

* * *

Bolt could not stop thinking about it. Mittens' words still echoed inside his head. They didn't make him feel any better.

"_I know he's trying to help, but I think he needs to learn that we don't need him to help like that. He's just going to hurt himself if he goes on like this."_

"Why? Why can't I do anything right?" Bolt mumbled to himself. The silence didn't answer his question. He sighed.

_Maybe I should take a walk. Mittens always said taking walks would clear my mind._

He stood up and started walking away from the house. He was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn't notice a small black cat running straight at him. He didn't notice her…until she shouted:

"Bolt, no!"

Before he knew what was happening, Mittens had jumped into his side, knocking both of them down to the soft grass. They tumbled and crashed into the crates and drum barrels, the top of the stacking swaying precariously, but holding. Bolt twisted his body and found himself face to face with her. She looked like she was ready to break down. Two of her paws were pressed on his chest.

"Bolt! Don't go…please don't go…" her voice cracked. She looked at him with pleading eyes. "I…I love you."

Bolt could only stare, stunned.

"M-Mittens? I'm not going anywhere."

The next three seconds were silent, and it felt like eternity.

"You're…not?" she whispered. Bolt slowly shook his head. Mittens blinked, a mixture of relief, confusion, and fear showing.

"B-but, I thought…" her eyes darted about, trying to put the pieces together. At that moment, Bolt froze. The words suddenly registered in his head. Everything from the river came crashing back inside his head. It was as if it didn't exist to him…until now. Mittens' words whispered to him, one by one.

_Bolt, I like you. I think I've fallen for you._

And now, she said the three words he knew all too well. It was something reserved for Penny. She was the only one who ever said that to him. Nobody else did. He knew that whatever Mittens was trying to say, it had huge ramifications. His eyes widened.

_She…loves me?_

"Mittens? Did you say you loved me?" he asked slowly. Mittens, suddenly aware of how horribly awkward the moment was, starting backing up.

"Um…" she directed her gaze upwards, trying to think of something to say. She never got the chance.

"B-Bolt!" she gasped, her eyes fixated skyward. Bolt craned his neck to see, but Mittens didn't let him. Bolt suddenly found himself tumbling as Mittens threw all her weight into his side, shoving him away. He instinctively shut his eyes when his face hit the ground, and his body tumbled away. He snapped his head back to see her, only to have one of the most horrifying images fill his petrified eyes.

It all played out ever so slowly. The snapping of the rotting plank; the collective collapse of the barrels and crates that it held, and the looming shadow that fell over them as it did. Time seemed to slow. Everything played out in slow motion, frame by frame, as the stacking, after 15 years of being untouched, finally came crashing down. He squeezed his eyes shut, and a moment later, there was a deafening crash that erupted through his eardrums.

Amazingly, he felt no pain. There was absolutely no movement for a whole minute. He wondered if he had died. Then, he realised he could feel his body. He wasn't dead.

He slowly opened his eyes again, and the first thing he saw was a splintered piece of wood staring at him in the face, just inches away. He froze and gulped, not even blinking, for fear that he'd injure himself. But eventually, his fear of being hurt himself was overridden by something else.

His body still unmoving, he directed his eyes downwards, where Mittens had been a moment ago. Now, what stood in her place was a broken wooden crate. Heart pounding wildly, Bolt's eyes swept over the wreckage. Then, he saw something that made his blood run cold. Mittens' paw was just visible, jutting out from under the broken wood…completely still.

"MITTENS!"

The utter, complete fear that enveloped his entire being left him wide-eyed, speechless. His heart beat so fast he thought it would leap out of his mouth. Then, at once, the he felt the blood flowing through his limbs again, filled with adrenaline. He ran forward, ignorant of the broken splinters jutting out like stalagmites, and started pulling the wreckage away.

_Mittens! Mittens! _His mind and heart called out pleadingly, hoping that the worst wasn't true. A dozen scenarios flashed through his mind, none of them good. His paw accidentally grazed the sharp end of a splinter, drawing blood. He didn't care. Only his friend mattered now, and just thinking it brought unimaginable pain.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He shouted to himself as he yanked away an empty drum barrel. He was close to removing the debris on top of her. Part of him didn't want to, for fear of what he would find. But bit by bit, he found an opening, where he could reach Mittens' body. He couldn't completely remove the heavier pieces of wood, so he had to settle for using his paws to lift the wreckage slightly and quickly drag her body out. He deeply regretted having to do that, but there was no other way.

Slowly, Mittens' unmoving body came into the light. Bolt didn't know whether to be relieved or horrified. She wasn't dead, but she had a nasty bruise on her head. She was breathing, albeit erratically. He didn't even want to begin thinking how she managed to survive such a heavy load on her small frame.

He glanced uneasily at the wreckage of barrels and crates. After he pulled Mittens out, the debris didn't collapse in. It just hung there, suspended by itself. Bolt didn't know this, but when the pile collapsed in on itself, it miraculously held itself together before it could fall on Mittens by supporting itself on both ends.

Just as Bolt was about to turn his head back to Mittens—as if it was choreographed to happen—the wreckage collapsed in on itself. Bolt stiffened, and at the back of his mind, he wondered what would have happened if he didn't pull Mittens out from under.

"Mittens, you've gotta be alright. You're going to be alright…" But life wanted to prove him wrong. He didn't notice at first, but eventually, he saw the blood flowing from the side of her head.

"Oh…oh no…Rhino! RHINO!"

* * *

Penny sat upright in her seat. It was as if someone had pricked her with a pin. She had been dozing off during lunch break on a bench outside, when suddenly she felt something ominously tear through her mind. She shivered, even though it was quite warm out. She completely regretted coming to school and leaving Bolt in his state at home. There was no telling what would happen after he woke up. Her senses were tingling, and she had learned to trust them ever since she was small.

Now, they were telling her that something was very, very wrong at home.

* * *

"What are we going to do?" Bolt yelled, panic overwhelming him. He had carefully carried Mittens' limp body into the house and laid her gently on the couch, trying not to throw up when he saw the blood seeping into the leather.

"We need to get help, now." Rhino looked around. "Penny and her mom aren't here. We need to find the vet."

"Where's the vet?" Bolt asked. A silence fell between them. They had no idea where the vet was, or how they were even going to get there.

_It's too far away, _Bolt thought. _We'll never get there in time before Mittens…_he gulped. He knew blood was supposed to stay inside people, and if someone lost too much…he shook his head.

"It doesn't matter. I'm going to find help, no matter what." He turned towards the door, but Rhino stopped him.

"Hold on. What about the phone? We can use the phone to call the vet!"

Having realised this, Bolt sprang up to the coffee table, where he nosed the phone off the receiver. The universal dial tone droned lazily in the air, waiting for a number to be entered. He flipped open a notebook Penny left next to the phone. She had written some words and numbers on it. But soon, depression sank in after it finally occurred to him. The words and numbers might have as well been meaningless scribbles to him, reminding him of one very important fact: he couldn't read.

"Rhino! I can't understand this!"

Rhino glanced intently at the words. He could read most of the names, but they were meaningless: he had no idea who the people listed were. He flipped the page and stared at the next list of contacts. Still nothing. There was no 'vet' anywhere. Even if there was, Penny probably wouldn't have written it down as 'vet', anyway.

"Rhino, what are you doing?" Bolt asked. Rhino didn't respond. He needed all his concentration to read the names.

Bolt watched Rhino stare at the notebook, not understanding in the least why he was doing so. Rhino soon felt the pressure mounting around him. The blood was still flowing freely from Mittens' head, and Bolt's panicked face did little to ease the situation. He didn't have the luxury of time to make a decision. He flipped the notebook a few pages; there must have been at least fifteen.

"Rhino?" Bolt asked worriedly.

"We got to try something. Anything." He started punching in a sequence of numbers. When the last one was entered, the droning sound ended, and it started ringing. They waited with bated breath as it rang. One ring, two rings…

Finally, there was click, and the line connected.

"Hello?"

Both of them recognised the voice to be that of Penny's mom. They exchanged glances.

"It's Penny's mom!" Rhino exclaimed. Bolt nodded, brightening up. It disappeared as soon as it came, though.

"Um…Rhino? What do we do now?"

"I don't know," Rhino said. "I never thought we'd make it this far."

They stood in silence, staring at the phone. Bolt was certain if Mittens were awake and seeing this, she'd be banging her head on the wall.

"Help! Help!" Bolt finally yelled into the receiver.

* * *

"I can't believe I came all the way back here."

Bolt put on the best puppy dog face he could, though he didn't need to do much to look pitifully sad—he already was.

"The two of you are amazing. I pick up the phone to hear Bolt barking away. You _do _know I can't understand what you're saying, right?" Penny's mom asked, somewhat amused.

Bolt sheepishly grinned, while his ears flattened guiltily.

"But anyway, the vet said she'll be fine, but she'll be unconscious for a day or so." Penny's mom stood up, wiping a bead of sweat from her brow.

Bolt processed the information, his brow furrowing. He didn't know whether to be upset or to be relieved at the news. But as he thought about it more, his shoulders slumped dejectedly. Penny's mom softened up a little.

"It's okay. It wasn't too much trouble," she assured. "What happened, anyway?"

Bolt's thoughts turned immediately to Mittens. She was always the one who would act out everything they wanted to say. Without her around, it felt like there was a part of him missing.

Dejectedly, Bolt raised a paw and pointed outside, where the remains of the stacking lay. Penny's mom seemed to get it, as she nodded slowly.

"It's okay. I'm sure it was just an accident."

_It was no accident. I let this happen to her._

Penny's mom lifted him onto her lap and stroked his head slowly, comfortingly. Bolt whimpered quietly, closing his eyes sorrowfully. He knew Mittens was hurt because of him. There was no other reason. She had pushed him out of the way. It was his fault.

Rhino watched this silently from the side lines. He stared at Bolt. He looked like the epitome of misery. Although Penny's mom was doing her best to comfort him, Rhino knew this ran deeper than what she knew. Much deeper. For this situation to be resolved, he was going to have to take some drastic measures.

He looked at Mittens. She never got to say what she wanted to Bolt. She had a plan to cheer Bolt up, although he had no idea what it was exactly. And cheering up was something Bolt desperately needed right now. He clenched his paws. Even if Mittens woke up, she would be in no condition to cheer him up.

_Then I guess it's up to me._

Immediately his mind rebutted the decision. A small voice questioned him, asking, _"How can you possibly do that?"_

Rhino scoffed silently to himself.

_I'm a Spartan. I can do this._

Hours passed. The afternoon droned on slowly, unaware that there were people waiting for it to go by as fast as possible. Bolt sat next to Mittens, checking periodically that she was alive and breathing. The guilt he felt refused to let go, though. It was suffocating him, drilling into his mind that everything was his fault, especially what happened to Mittens.

She was forced onto a moving train because _he_ believed he had powers.

She was captured by animal control because _he_ started barking away.

She was injured when_ he _pulled her off the lamp at the vet's office.

And now, she was almost killed, because he…he…

_It's my fault._

He turned to see his friend. She didn't look peaceful. There was a slight look of discomfort on her face, and when Bolt saw the bandage wrapped around the side of her head, he felt another lance of pain through his heart.

"I'm so sorry, Mittens. Please wake up…I'd do anything if you'd just wake up. Let me know you're okay…" he mumbled quietly to her, as if he expected she'd suddenly wake up. But he knew it wasn't going to happen like that. This wasn't his tv show.

Bolt ran his paw through Mittens' fur. It felt soft. She felt so fragile suddenly, like if he were to push a little harder, she would just fall apart. She'd always been like that, being scrawny and all, but now Bolt felt hesitant to even touch her. He wished she would wake up. He wanted nothing more than to apologise, to say he was sorry for all the trouble he caused her. But deep inside, he knew it would never be enough to make for what he'd done to her.

"Please forgive me, Mitts." He adjusted himself on the couch, before lying down quietly next to her, letting the minutes tick away, waiting for her to open her eyes.

* * *

Penny had almost thrown a fit when she got back home in the evening. It took a lot of reassuring from her mom before she finally calmed down. She had waited with Bolt initially, sitting next to him and comforting him the same way her mom did. But when it got late, she fell asleep on the couch, her hand still resting on Bolt.

"Penny?" Bolt asked. There was no response. She was fast asleep. Her mom entered the room soon after, saw her, and shook her head.

"She's so stubborn," she sighed. "Must have gotten it from her father." She placed her arms underneath Penny's body, and in one motion, lifted her off the couch. Bolt yapped inquisitively.

"Don't worry, I'm just going to bring her into her room," she said. Bolt nodded. She was gone, leaving Bolt alone again with Mittens.

Bolt found it difficult to sleep when Mittens was in her current state. He sat there unmoving, sans the occasional glance at the black cat, for many hours, until eventually, he laid his head down and closed his eyes to try and rest. He didn't know how long he had been doing that.

_Bolt._

He stirred.

_Bolt._

He frowned, trying to push away the incessant noise.

"…Bolt."

Bolt opened his eyes and looked up. It was Rhino, standing on the armrest of the couch. He was breathing calmly, something that unnerved Bolt almost immediately. He hardly ever saw Rhino without his grin on his face. Behind Rhino, the digital clock showed the time: 3.24 a.m.

"Hey Bolt, can we take a walk?"

"Why?" Bolt asked, slightly surprised.

"Because taking walks unlock new dimensions of thought and grant epiphanies of the soul." Typical Rhino. Bolt blinked.

"Okay…?" he took one last look at Mittens. She was still unmoving, and she didn't look like she was going to wake up anytime soon.

He gently left her side and followed Rhino out the front door. They walked out into the darkness of the early morning. It was chilly, something which always puzzled Bolt since the afternoons were pretty warm. It was another bout of silence between them as they made their way…nowhere. Rhino seemed to be just walking straight. As they got further from the house, the light slowly dimmed out, but the full moon's light illuminated the garden just enough for Bolt to see him.

Then, Rhino stopped, staring at the moon and stars. Bolt followed his gaze and stared with him for a few moments. When he saw the full moon, he felt like he should have been doing something, but he had no idea what exactly.

_Mittens would know. She knows all these things._

The silence was suddenly uncomfortable for Bolt. The notion didn't occur to him until now, but when he wondered what Rhino was thinking, he felt the heavy guilt weighing on his shoulders. Was Rhino angry at him for allowing this to happen to Mittens? Did he call him out to berate him? Whatever it was, Rhino's calm expression said nothing.

"Rhino, I know you hate me for letting this happen to Mittens, and I—" he cut himself short when Rhino turned and stretched out a paw, signalling him to stop.

"What happened to Mittens wasn't your fault." He lowered his paw, looking at Bolt with sympathetic eyes. "And neither was yesterday."

"Rhino…I…" he couldn't find any words to say. How could he possibly believe in the slightest that it _wasn't _his fault?

"Mittens wanted to tell you something, you know," Rhino said.

Bolt perked up.

"Actually, she wanted to show you something. Come on." Rhino started walking towards a large tree. Bolt followed silently. When they finally got there, Rhino stopped and stared into thin air. The moonlight gave him a sort of mysterious aura.

"Can I ask you a question?" Rhino asked.

"Um…sure."

Do you know who you are?"

The question caught Bolt off guard. He recoiled, trying to process the words. He blinked and stared at the diminutive hamster in front of him, but it did little to answer his question.

"I'm…Bolt." Rhino shook his head.

"No. You're not Bolt," he replied almost immediately. Bolt's eyes widened. What was Rhino saying?

"You're not Bolt," Rhino repeated. "You are who you are."

Bolt tilted his head, repeating the sentence in his head. He still couldn't get it. He sighed.

"Rhino, I don't understand."

"Bolt was a tv show character. He wasn't real. You are not Bolt, the tv show character. That character died that night, under the stars of the night sky, where you learned the truth. You know that, right?"

Bolt nodded slowly. He remembered that night well.

"_I...can't."_

"Penny didn't care about Bolt the super dog, the one who protected her from the green-eyed man. She cared about _you_, her dog. Look." Rhino motioned behind himself.

Bolt, hesitant, stepped forward and looked where Rhino was pointing. He gasped slightly.

Spread out around him neatly were several photos. They were old, but well preserved. But that was not what surprised him. What did surprise him was what the photos depicted. They were unfamiliar to him.

"Rhino…these are…"

They were pictures from a different time. Some of them had faded away slightly, but were still recognisable. He looked at the photos, and saw himself, with Penny. Four years ago. In one photo, he was smiling for the camera, with a party hat on his head. He could clearly see the number 1 printed on the hat—his first birthday. He pushed the picture aside, and looked at another. He was sleeping peacefully next to Penny, and her mom was stroking her lovingly as she slept. It never occurred to Bolt when he saw the picture…who actually took it.

_I…remember these. These were so long ago…_

He looked at another photo. Somehow, his attention was focused on his own brown eyes in the picture. They were bright, sparkling with happiness and enthusiasm. Bolt knew they didn't look that way now.

He sat riveted, looking at the photos, and reliving each memory as it slowly reappeared in the depths of his mind. Rhino said nothing for five whole minutes; he only watched Bolt silently as he dove into the small stack of photos.

"This was before you were on the tv show. Look at Penny. She loved you so much back then. And you weren't protecting her at all. You were yourself, and that made her happy."

He pointed to the last picture. The final picture, aptly, was the one that held the most meaning for him. The background was unmistakable. It was the Silverlake animal shelter. He was there, in Penny's arms, licking her wildly while someone snapped a photo—their very first photo.

"No one is asking you to be anything more than yourself, Bolt. It's okay to not be the one who protects Penny. It's okay if you can't be who you thought you _were_. What's important is that you know who you _are_. Penny wouldn't love you any less if you weren't her protector. That goes the same for me and Mittens. You're our friend because you are yourself, not because of your powers, or anything else."

Bolt didn't look convinced.

"I thought you were always talking about me being awesome because of all my powers, and what I did on tv. All the heat vision, super strength, and…" he stalled.

Rhino shook his head, smiling warmly.

"Yeah, the powers were awesome. But I see people with awesome powers all the time on the magic box. You were different. Do you know why I'm your biggest admirer? You had a heart of gold, a fierce loyalty to Penny, and most of all, you were selfless, putting her above yourself. That was what inspired me. That is why you are awesome." If anything else, Bolt could tell he was sincere. He fell silent again. Rhino stepped forward and placed a paw on Bolt's own.

"You can't blame yourself for something you had no control over. And having no control is okay. You can't always be in control of everything. You can't always make things the way you want them to, like you used to. But you can control what's really important." Bolt looked at him now. "You can control what's in here." He placed his paw to his chest.

"You have to let go of the past. You have to let go, because there are people waiting for you now. We need you to be the person you can be…Wags."

That one single word changed everything. It struck a nerve with Bolt His eyes widened, his mouth falling open slightly in his sudden realisation.

"Wags…"

"That's right. Mittens didn't care about Bolt the super dog either. She cared about Wags, her best friend, the one who showed her the light."

Bolt was fully awake now. He said it so softly that Rhino had to strain his ears to hear it.

"Mittens."

There was a soft thud, and Bolt realised Rhino placed something at his feet.

"This is what Mittens wanted to give you, to cheer you up. She wanted you to remember who you are. I think…she just wants her friend back."

Bolt looked down, and felt the wind taken out of him. Whatever doubts that remained were washed away in that one instant—the moment he saw it. His whole body trembled, and he was just…overwhelmed beyond belief.

It was Mr Carrot.

For one whole minute, he stood paralyzed, letting every memory rush in. Mr Carrot, the one who had stuck by Bolt through thick and thin; entertaining him when he was bored; comforting him when he was down; smiling even in the darkest of situations for him. Awash with emotions, he felt the walls that he had created around his heart crumble away at the sight of his first, and favourite toy.

As if there were a force guiding him, he reached his neck down and gently placed his jaws around the squeak toy. He was hesitant at first, but slowly, he let go of his inhibitions, and picked it up, chewing it slowly, hearing every precious, timeless squeak; squeaks that echoed in the darkness of the night. Squeaks that brought the fondest, warmest memories flowing back like a tidal wave.

Before he knew it, he was experiencing an emotion he hadn't felt in a long time. True, pure happiness. And with that happiness, came a realisation. He didn't need to be Penny's protector. He just needed to be her puppy. He was the light in her life. He was Rhino's inspiration. He was Mittens'…

"Do you remember?" Rhino asked.

"…I remember," Bolt said, his voice cracking. He had built those walls a long time ago, when he was given his powers. He bitterly told himself that showing emotions was showing weakness, and so had shut them away deep inside himself, only showing it to Penny in the trailer. When he learned the truth, they cracked, but they still held. He was too stubborn to let them go. The stubborn walls still held. Until now.

Now, whatever remained was blown away into the distance, and for the first time since he was a puppy, he was completely open. Vulnerable. And with his soul bared, Bolt gave in. He allowed himself to succumb to his emotions.

For the first time in years, Bolt cried.

He let the tears flow freely from his eyes, the little drops trickling down the side of his face and onto Mr Carrot. Years of worry, pent up frustration and other emotions were at long last, released from his heavily burdened soul. His burden of finding Penny, his burden of almost killing Mittens and Rhino, his burden of leaving them behind, his burden of not being able to protect Penny, and Mittens…they were in the open. After years of keeping them all bottled up together, the pressure finally broke it all down.

"M-Mittens…" he sniffled.

Rhino was completely taken by surprise. Even though he was the most genre savvy of the three, he still didn't expect this much of a reaction from Bolt. But it didn't matter. What did matter was that somehow, miraculously, he had gotten through to Bolt.

It was like that for a long while. Time had lost its meaning in the garden. Together, they sat, feeling the chilling wind blow through the garden. Bolt was deep in thought, and his breathing slowly stabilised after a while. After clearing his head, something he had forgotten had resurfaced once more.

_Mittens._

He thought long and hard about it. Finally, he turned to Rhino.

"Rhino, can I ask you about something?"

Rhino looked back at Bolt.

"Shoot."

* * *

It started as a ripple. Then, it slowly manifested into something more. The pain. The wracking pain that tore through her head. There was a blinding flash of light. She saw his petrified eyes…and then, blackness. She had drifted off into a void, a place that held no substance. There was no dreaming there, no memories to remember. She just floated aimlessly, hearing voices she could not understand around her. She thought it was nice, just drifting there, but something nagged at her. Something screamed at her to break out of it, to wake up.

She tried to ignore it, to supress it. But it only served to make the screaming voice louder.

_Wake up!_

_Wake up!_

And then, the voices disappeared. Mittens slowly opened her eyes. The blank television stared back at her wordlessly. She blinked, trying to clear the fog that clouded her vision. It didn't take too long. It caught in her throat for a moment, but she still heard the scream in her head.

_Bolt!_

It came crashing back. The falling of the crates…and with that recollection, and a burst of adrenaline, she jumped off the couch. Her head throbbed. Her face burned. She felt like falling apart. But she didn't care. She had to know if Bolt was alright. She had only seen him for a moment before she blacked out. Her heart pounded in fear, scared of what she would find. She dashed out the door, towards the barn. There was a big pile on the ground, and she couldn't see Bolt anywhere.

_Bolt…you'd better be alright…_she pleaded.

She ran faster, ignoring the pain in her head. Unfortunately, she ran a little too fast, and ended up tripping over herself. She yelped, trying to correct her balance, but it was too late. She landed with a loud smack on the grass.

"Ow…" the fall aggravated the wound, which she hadn't thought about until now. She noticed it was bandaged, somewhat belatedly. She hoped she wasn't bleeding.

There was a soft thud near her, followed by the sound of soft, fast footsteps. She turned to her side, her ears twitching. A dark shadowy figure was approaching extremely fast. The adrenaline wasn't working all of a sudden. Instinct told her to run, but she stood frozen there, watching it get closer.

"Mittens?"

Her heart skipped a beat. The voice was all too familiar.

"Bolt?" she whispered. Bolt stepped up in front of her, a look of disbelief on his face. He had been lying on the porch when he suddenly saw Mittens, dashing out the front door at full speed. He had been stunned for a moment, but soon recovered and chased after her.

"You're awake…you're okay…" Bolt said. Mittens could feel the relief radiate from his voice. She felt something else in his voice as well. Was it happiness? Joy? Or was it—

Bolt ran forward and embraced her—although somewhat awkwardly—being mindful of her head. She felt his warm touch on her entire body, and she relaxed in his gentle hold. He was alive. He was alright. That was enough for her to breathe again. She could have sworn she heard him sniffling.

"Bolt, I'm okay. I'm fine," Mittens reassured. "I'm fine."

Bolt let her go. Mittens looked into his eyes, and saw something entirely different. That same morning, those eyes were dull and lifeless. Now, even in the dark, she could see life in them, as if someone had lit a light behind them. They were bright, beacons in the dark.

Bolt looked at the black cat in front of him. He would never have imagined he would feel this way, but he probably was. Rhino's words echoed in his head. He had asked, and Rhino had answered. Bolt couldn't believe it at first, but the more Rhino spoke, the more he explained, the more Bolt believed. Now, as he stared into her eyes, he knew in all absoluteness, in all certainty, that it was true. Bolt breathed in and out once, slowly, before speaking.

"Mittens, is it too late for me to say that I love you?"

Silence.

No words could describe what Mittens felt at that point. She stared at him for a few seconds, saying nothing. Then, there was a ripple. Bolt watched the expression on her face change…from utter disbelief, to hope…and finally, to cresting joy.

"No…it's not too late," she said, a tear falling down her cheek.

The final burden on _both_ of their hearts was lifted. And on that Friday, under the dark veil of night, they kissed for the first time in their lives, knowing that things would never be the same again between the both of them. And they were both fine with that.

* * *

Rhino stood on the windowsill in the living room, watching everything unfold in the garden. When he saw them kiss, he smiled, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Well, it's about time."


	18. Whatever We Imagine

**A/N:** Exams are approaching, fast. I may not be able to update as frequently. I'll still do my best.

Thanks to Bane767, Splatman, Mildirk, Aronim, Mike101, dogman15, Arkazu, Carl Minez, and 1dchouseman for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 18: Whatever We Imagine**

Some pretty amazing stuff had happened in Bolt's life up to now, but not even in his wildest dreams had he ever imagined himself to be in this position, doing what he was doing. His heart was doing backflips. His eyes were closed, and the only indication he had of Mittens' presence was her muzzle pressed against his own. They heard each other's breath, feeling the other's heartbeat. Eventually, they broke the kiss.

"Um…I…" Mittens said, embarrassed. She tried to stifle a grin. Bolt could almost feel the embarrassment radiating from her. She looked up, the last tear wiped away from her eyes. Bolt smiled. Suddenly, she started laughing.

"Mitts?"

"Oh Wags…I…it's just…I never thought…"

"I know. I didn't know about it either. Well, until Rhino told me anyway."

Mittens' smile faded a little. Now she looked more confused.

"Rhino?" Bolt nodded, his tail swaying back and forth gently. He noticed Mittens' tail was doing the same. He never noticed it before, but they seemed to wag their tails in unison in certain moments they shared together.

"What did he say?"

Bolt shrugged, uncertain. "He told me that you love me. That's everything, right?"

"Wait a minute." Mittens did a double take. "I thought you didn't know what love was. How did you—"

"He taught me about it," Bolt finished.

Mittens stared at him in disbelief.

"Are you sure we're talking about the same Rhino here?" she asked skeptically.

"Yup," Bolt replied in earnest. A hundred scenarios flashed through Mittens' head at the thought of Rhino teaching Bolt about love. Half of them made her embarrassed. The other half made her want to hit her head against a tree.

"How many years have I been out again?" she joked.

Bolt laughed, nuzzling her affectionately with his nose. A chilling gust of wind swept through the garden, making Mittens shiver. Bolt protectively shielded her with his own body, pressing himself next to her. She looked up at him, her paw moving on top of his. Now uninhibited, her tail swayed towards his, and it unconsciously flicked against his own tail. His tail twitched, as if it were surprised at the sudden sensation.

"I think we should go inside. It's freezing out here," Mittens said. Bolt nodded, standing up.

Mittens did so as well, but Bolt stopped her before she took a single step.

"No, let me help you. You're injured. I'll carry you." Mittens blinked, but broke out into a mirthful smile once more.

"You want to carry me on your back?"

Bolt nodded, lowering his back, motioning for her to get on. Mittens couldn't decide whether to feel awkward or laugh. She got on anyway, placing one front leg over his back, before raising her hind leg and bringing it over as well, doing her best to straddle him. Before she could adjust herself, Bolt stood up, and Mittens yelped in surprise at the new sensation of riding on someone.

"Hey, slow down, Wags. I almost fell off there."

"Sorry. This is only the second time I'm carrying you."

"The second?" Mittens laughed. "I don't ever remember letting you carry me in any way before this."

Bolt started walking back towards the house. He turned his head, a playful glint in his eyes.

"Oh, it happened alright," Bolt replied, his childish tone setting in. "Did you know you fell asleep right after the fireworks in Vegas? How do you think you ended up in the alley afterwards?"

Bolt heard nothing from Mittens for a few seconds. If he did, he would have seen her completely abashed expression. She playfully swatted his ears in response. Bolt chuckled.

"I think you liked it. You did, didn't you?"

"You talk too much, Wags." She rubbed her head affectionately on Bolt's neck. And that was the last thing said between them as Bolt padded back into the house. He nosed open the door, being as quiet as possible. He stopped in front of the couch, lowering himself so Mittens could get off.

For a moment, neither one of them knew what to say. There was so much to say, but they just didn't know where to start.

"So…" Bolt said, breaking the silence. "It was since Vegas?"

"Since Vegas," Mittens said. How long it had been since then. So much had changed.

"Then, the reason you built those makeshift houses in Vegas…" Bolt trailed off. Mittens nodded.

"And the reason you came back for me at the studio…"

"…Was because I loved you."

Bolt brightened up after hearing the words. He playfully licked her, his white tail beating back and forth rapidly. On most other occasions, Mittens would have minded—to a small extent anyway—him licking her. Although he didn't drool like most dogs, his tongue was still slobbery. But now she didn't mind it in the least.

A sudden itch caused her to squirm uncomfortably. She brought a paw to her bandaged head as the wound caused by the falling debris decided to make life uncomfortable for her. She pawed at it, but without her claws there wasn't much satisfaction produced. She couldn't use her tongue to ease the burning itch either—for obvious reasons.

"Darn this thing…" she muttered. Bolt, trying to be helpful as always, leaned forward and tugged at the bandage with his teeth. He kept one paw on Mittens' shoulder to keep her from falling over and pulled gently at the bandage. It started with a small tear, but eventually the tape holding the bandage was torn off. The rest of the firmly wound bandage unravelled rapidly without the sticky tape holding it together, falling to the ground. Mittens used a paw to clear the remainder of the bandage off her head, appreciating the cool air that now caressed it.

"Thanks." She smiled. Bolt returned the smile, and when he did, he felt the little fluttering feeling that he seemed to get whenever he saw her smile. But then, her smile vanished.

"Your paw...it's hurt."

Bolt raised his injured paw. The splinter had long since been removed, but the sudden mention of it caused it to ache.

"Don't worry, it's nothing."

_Typical Bolt, _Mittens thought. She decided to drop the subject, for now anyway.

"So Wags, what exactly did Rhino tell you?" Mittens asked, not making an effort to hide her curiosity.

"Well…" Bolt said, trying to remember exactly. "It was right after he brought me outside for a walk…"

* * *

"Rhino, can I ask you something?" Bolt asked. Rhino looked at him.

"Shoot."

"Well, I…it's about Mittens. I don't know why, but when I think of her like this, it makes me feel terrible. I can't stop thinking about her, Rhino. There's this funny feeling inside of me…like when I'm not near her, I…I just want to be with her, and…" he trailed off, staring at Rhino, who had a look of utter disbelief on his face. His whiskers were twitching.

"R-Rhino?" Bolt asked, uncertain. Mr. Carrot was still held loosely in his mouth.

"Hold on a second," Rhino said. He walked over to the tree they were standing next to. Then, he proceeded to bang his head on it repeatedly.

"Hey Rhino, wait!" Bolt yelled. He ran up to the little hamster, who was muttering to himself.

"How could I have missed this? It was right there in front of me, and I missed it!"

"Um…Rhino?"

Rhino stopped hurting himself, and cleared his throat, turning to Bolt.

"Bolt. Are you sure of what you just said?"

"Y-Yes. Is there something wrong?"

Bolt thought he saw a glint in Rhino's eyes. He thought he saw him smile, but even if he did, it vanished as soon as it appeared.

"No, there's nothing wrong. You're just in love with her."

"I'm…in love?" Bolt repeated. Rhino nodded.

"What does that mean?" Bolt asked. He heard the term before—twice in fact—from Mittens, but he still had no idea what it meant. It was starting to get a little frustrating. Rhino contemplated his question, tapping his paw on his chin.

"Well, love is…er…it is awesome. Yes, it's this fully awesome feeling." Rhino nodded thoughtfully.

"I was hoping for a little more than that…" Bolt said.

"Well, it means everything you just said. You can't stop thinking about her, check. You have this unexplained funny feeling inside your stomach, check. You…er…" he paused. Bolt gazed intently at him, waiting for him to continue.

"You know, I think it'll be easier if I do this. Come, Bolt. It's time for your final lesson."

Back in the house, Rhino hopped up onto the couch, preparing the remote. Bolt jumped up next to him and sat down, glancing back at Mittens to make sure she was alright. He turned back to Rhino, cocking his head in amusement.

"You're going to be my teacher this time?" he asked. Rhino shook his head.

"Not me." He gestured to the blank tv. "The magic box. The most legendary of teachers, the one who taught me everything I know. He will be your teacher."

A small thought crossed Bolt's mind after Rhino said that.

_Why didn't Mittens ever teach me about this before? She told me she pretty much taught me everything._

His thoughts were left unanswered as the box came to life, unceremoniously with the bang of a grenade launcher firing a round into a group of militants. Both Rhino and Bolt jumped at the sudden sharp bang—even though it wasn't real—and scrambled for the volume button.

"Whoops," Rhino said. Unfortunately the sound wasn't enough to wake Mittens up, which kind of disappointed Bolt. Thankfully though, Penny and her mom didn't seem to be disturbed by it.

"What are you looking for, Rhino?" Bolt asked.

"Uncharted territory, where I have rarely been. It's something Mittens didn't tell you because…well, see for yourself." He arrived at the channel he was looking for.

Bolt, feeling less than satisfied with Rhino's answer, sat back in his seat and watched the show.

He was quite surprised to see that the main characters of the show were dogs. The first thing he noticed was that the voices of the animals were dubbed; a little piece of knowledge courtesy of Rhino. It made sense: humans wouldn't understand anything they were saying anyway.

The second thing he noticed was that the two of them were behaving rather oddly towards each other. They were walking across a snowy plain in almost pitch black darkness. Ever so often, one of them would say something to the other, making the other laugh for reasons Bolt did not understand. When they decided to stop for the night, they took shelter in a small cave hollowed out in the mountains. When the girl shivered and the guy pulled her closer to him to keep her warm, Bolt found himself watching more intently. It reminded him of something similar that happened between him and Mittens during the cross country trip. Now, remembering that particular event made him flush beneath his fur.

Bolt didn't think his face could even feel so hot, but it did as he saw the interactions between the two on screen. For dogs who were acting, they were sure doing a good job. The girl's laughs and the boy's playful childish tone and actions reminded Bolt of how he would play with Mittens. The strangest part was that he could almost feel himself in the boy's shoes (so to speak) when he jumped in front of her and scared her, or when he playfully pushed her to the ground laughing. Their awkward interactions caught Bolt's attention more than any of Calico's henchmen ever did.

He didn't know how long he had been staring at the screen, mouth hanging slightly open. When the two of them stared longingly at each other, Bolt leaned forward in his seat. The camera panned to show their faces up close. Bolt could feel his heart racing a mile a minute.

Then, the screen froze. The credits started rolling. Bolt, unaware that he leaned too far out, yelped as he fell off the couch and hit the floor with a thud.

"Ow," he groaned, his voice muffled by the carpet. He picked himself up and found himself glancing over at Mittens again. Rhino pushed his ball to the floor and landed next to him.

"Um, Rhino? Just now, was that…am I…?" Rhino nodded.

"Yes."

That one word pretty much summed up the whole lesson. Bolt still didn't know why he felt this way, but he was pretty sure he was, from what Rhino just showed him. He turned his head away, embarrassed—a feeling he also couldn't explain. It frustrated, yet intrigued him to no end. Through all his days in the studio, on the set, he had no such feelings for anyone, and it surprised him that it was only now that he started feeling them.

_Only now?_

"Um...Rhino, why do they...and why do I...?" his face started heating up again.

"It's natural. Everybody falls in love sooner or later. There will come a time where you will find a special someone that you want to spend the rest of your life with. That 'someone' for you is Mittens."

Whatever Rhino said after that, Bolt didn't hear. He looked back at Mittens from the corner of his eye, transfixed by her motionless body.

When? The question was when. It had to be when they spent three weeks together. After animal control, Vegas…was it in Vegas?

_No, it was before that. It was when…_

"…but anyway, Bolt, you know what you have to do," Rhino said, placing a small paw on Bolt's front leg. Bolt snapped out of his thoughts and looked down at him, surprised.

"What?"

"Yes, Bolt. You have to fulfill your destiny. The time…is now."

"How do I do that?" he asked, glancing back at Mittens, who was still out cold.

"Close your eyes," Rhino said. Bolt obeyed.

"Let yourself ride on the wind, Bolt. Listen to your heart. Don't think, feel. It will come to you in time."

A silence fell between them. When Bolt opened his eyes after a few seconds, he realized Rhino was gone. He looked around, but saw no trace that the diminutive hamster had ever been there.

_Okay, that was weird._

He shook his head and dismissed it. There were more important things to do right now, anyway. He jumped up on the sofa and inspected Mittens. She was still stable, as the people on his show would always say. TV show reflexes kicked in again, and he placed a paw to her forehead. It wasn't warm—which was good. There was no reopening of the wound on the side of her head, which was also good.

Bolt sighed. Rhino told him to 'listen to his heart'. _How am I supposed to do that?_

_"Wags, when you're feeling down, you should just take a walk. It'll help clear your mind. Trust me."_

"A walk…" Bolt murmured. He looked at Mittens. He pressed his nose on her neck, hoping she would feel it. He then dropped to the floor and padded softly towards the porch.

* * *

"…and that's about it," Bolt said. He didn't know what to think when Mittens gave him a look of amusement, and at the same time, utter disbelief.

"Wait, wait, wait," she said, trying her best to contain her laughter. "You actually let Rhino use the magic box to teach you about _love_?"

"Well, um…when you put it that way…" He shuffled uncomfortably. Mittens couldn't help it. She burst out laughing.

"Come on, Mitts..."

"Sorry, I just...it's..." she fell onto her back, unable to complete her sentence. Although it looked like she was laughing at him, in actual fact, she was also laughing in joy. Bolt didn't know that though, and one of his ears drooped as he gave Mittens a look. Still she didn't stop. His eyes narrowed, and a grin crept across his muzzle. He needed to be careful not to hurt her.

Mittens never saw it coming. One moment she was on her feet. The next, she was on the ground, pinned in one dexterous pounce. It wasn't too difficult, considering she was already on her back. His fur tickled hers, and did little but prolong her mirthful laughter. She laughed so hard her stomach hurt.

Bolt tried to hold it back in, but when he thought about it again—Rhino giving him advice on _love_—he couldn't help but break into laughter as well.

It took a few minutes for them to calm down. But even then, when they tried to talk again, they would only utter a few incomplete sentences before breaking out into another fit of giggles. Eventually they settled down again though, mostly out of fatigue. Bolt decided to ask Mittens a question he'd been pondering over for the longest time ever since finding out she loved him.

"Mittens? Why didn't you ever tell me about this before? Why did you keep it from me for so long?"

Mittens' smile vanished. Bolt could see her looking down at the ground, pawing it uncomfortably. He knew he'd touched a nerve.

"I…I was scared of what you might say. I didn't know what you would've thought if I suddenly just told you like that."

"Is that why you've been acting so funny lately?" He asked. Mittens nodded.

"But why were you scared?" he questioned, genuinely confused.

"Because, well… dogs and cats…they're not supposed to love each other."

"Why not?"

"Because…" Mittens' voice dropped a little. "We're different species. It's against the law of nature. It's wrong."

"I don't like that law," Bolt said, his ears dropping. "Why is it wrong?"

"Well, people don't really think a dog and a cat can love each other. It's…it's…"

Mittens had no good reply, really. Maybe it was just because she didn't want to find a reason that would prohibit them from being together.

Bolt fell silent, deep in thought. When he finally spoke up again, he had a firm determination in his voice and a renewed spark in his eyes.

"I don't think we should worry about what other people think, Mittens. I still love you. And I think we shouldn't let anyone else tell us how to live. Isn't that what you always told me?"

"But…" Mittens said hesitantly.

"Come on Mitts. Remember when I asked you who I was if I wasn't a super dog? You told me that I could be whoever I wanted, whoever I imagined myself to be. Well, I think the two of us can be whoever we want ourselves to be." He smiled encouragingly.

"Wags…"

"Don't run anymore, Mittens. I want you to smile like you used to. I want you to be happy."

Mittens didn't know what to say. The words he spoke were so clichéd, but he was so sincere that she felt compelled to believe him. With all her heart.

"Wags, I _am _happy." Bolt didn't need to ask why. He already knew. She buried her head below his chin, nuzzling him affectionately. Then she looked straight at his face. They moved closer, Bolt anticipating what would happen next. But in a moment of dramatic cliché, their noses bumped awkwardly.

"Umm..." they both said simultaneously, visibly embarrassed. After a beat, Mittens leaned forward and licked him gently across his right cheek.

"That works," Bolt said, smiling. He licked her back. She returned to rubbing her head below his. Bolt lowered his own head onto hers, and before he knew it, she started purring. The unfamiliar sound surprised Bolt. He had only heard her purr once. And that was when…

"Bolt?"

"Hmm? Yes, Mittens?"

"I want to know." She looked up at him. "When did you…you know…feel this way?"

"Oh…" Bolt let his eyes grow distant at the memory. But before he could start a sentence, he involuntarily let out a large yawn. He shook his head, trying to keep things in focus. It seemed that finally, the sleepless hours of worrying had caught up with him.

"Wags…" Mittens looked at him with a worried frown. "Did you get any sleep while you were waiting for me to wake up?"

"Of course Mittens…I definitely got…enough…" he yawned again, this time longer than the last.

"No you didn't," she said flatly. "Come on, you should get some sleep. You can tell me tomorrow."

Bolt's head started swaying, but he managed a tired nod before he laid down to rest. Before he slipped into unconsciousness though, he pulled Mittens to his side, placing a front paw around her small body. He licked her one last time on her head before closing his eyes. The moment that happened, he was fast asleep.

_This is a dream come true, _Mittens thought, elated. _He loves me. _No number of words could properly express her immense joy. Next to her, Mr Carrot smiled like he always did, as if now glad that the two of them were finally together. She picked him up with her teeth and nestled him in the space between their heads. Bolt didn't notice it at all. Mittens was about to lie down with him when a small, almost forgotten thought drifted into her mind.

It was the only thing Rhino didn't tell Bolt, for better or for worse. It was a big issue, Mittens knew, and if she could, she would avoid it. Still, he had a right to know. She wondered what he would think when he found out…or when she told him. She told herself she would tell him tomorrow. No more secrets.

_I know we can be whatever we imagine._

She looked at him.

"Whatever we imagine," she whispered in the silence of the early morning.

_Maybe…_

_Just maybe…_


	19. Only Yesterday

**A/N: **It's been a while. My exams just ended, and I finally have time to write. I haven't written for so long, so this chapter may not be up to my usual standards. I am getting back into the writing mood though, so the next chapter would be better, I hope. I hope you enjoy this chapter though.

Thanks (a very late one, unfortunately) to Carl Minez, dogman15, mildirk, Aronim, 1dchouseman, Mike101, and Splateman for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 19: Only Yesterday**

_You showed me the way to leave the past and all its tears behind me.  
Tomorrow may be even brighter than today, since I threw my sadness away.  
Only yesterday. _

When Bolt opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was orange. Puzzled, he shifted his head. Almost instantly his vision cleared, and he was staring at the blank tv again. Mr. Carrot had fallen off his nose and hit the floor with a soft squeak. Half of his body felt significantly warmer than the other half, and it took only a second to remember what happened last night.

_I love Mittens._

That simple realization, those three words, had changed his life completely. Several new thoughts flitted into his mind now that he had rested, all of them about her and the implications of their new relationship. His mind drifted back to when he first met her. Back then, he'd detested her with almost every ounce of his being just for being a cat. But not even twenty-four hours later, he'd gone and rescued her because he cared. And because she rescued him first.

Rescued him from the darkness.

Part of him still couldn't believe he held this sort of special affection towards her. Rhino had told him that this sort of relationship was special. A "special someone" for him, in his own words. Mittens was his special someone? A cat? She told him cats hate dogs, and the reverse was true as well. Would it be right to like her? Love her?

Mittens snuggled closer to him, purring contently, and that simple action answered that question once and for all. Bolt licked her gently on her head, and she stirred almost immediately.

"Oh, you're awake, Wags," she said. She also said softly, "finally."

"How are you, Mittens?" Bolt asked. "Are you feeling better?"

"Much." She smiled. She yawned, stretching her body on the sofa. Bolt followed suit, realizing he hadn't done this for a long time. Once they were done, they sat down again, looking at each other, and the now illuminated house. The golden rays of morning sunlight flitted through the gaps in the curtains covering the windows. Bolt walked over and pulled them aside with his teeth. Instantly the living room brightened. The dawn of a new morning. The dawn of a new relationship.

Bolt walked back to Mittens' side. With the light clearing the last traces of fog in his mind, he could think more clearly. The first thing that came to his mind was the tv remote. Light reflected off the black shiny surface and into his eye, reminding him of something.

"Rhino. We need to tell Rhino about this," Bolt said, turning to Mittens.

"Rhino? That kinda takes the fun out of being in love," Mittens said, frowning.

"Come on, Mittens. He _is _the one who brought us together. The least we could do is thank him."

"I know, I know. I'm just pulling ya tail." She stopped to think for a moment.

"What do you think he'll say when we tell him?"

"Maybe something like 'FULLY AWESOME!'" Rhino said, from right behind them. They both jumped, jerking backwards to face him.

"Rhino! Where did you come from?" Mittens asked.

"Penny's room," he replied flatly. Mittens gave him a look.

"I think she means how you got behind us without us noticing," Bolt offered.

"Oh, haven't you heard? I'm like a ninja." He started making ninja motions with his hands. "Anyway, epic congratulations seem to be in order." He smirked.

Bolt smiled widely; Mittens dipped her head a little shyly. Hearing all this from Rhino was still something she hadn't gotten used to. Rhino started rolling his ball back and forth quickly, chattering excitedly.

"We should have an awesome celebration when Penny comes home. It'll be awesome! There should be banners, ticker tape…oh, and there must be cake. We must have cake!"

"Whoa, hold up Rhino," Bolt said. "When Penny comes home? I thought she didn't have school today." _How come I never noticed her leave the house? Was I really that fast asleep?_

"She said she had…uh…something to do. She'll be back later. Anyway, cake! There's chocolate, ice cream cake, chocolate ice cream cake…"

Bolt raised his eyebrows, skeptical, but decided to leave it for now.

"I'm guessing you know about us already, then?" Mittens said, a small trace of awkwardness still showing.

"CAKE!" he screamed, his eyes bulging. Bolt and Mittens stared.

"Sorry. I like cake. Anyway, yeah I know. Also, I…" he trailed off, his eyes widening. "Um, nothing, nothing."

"Rhino?" Bolt asked.

"Nah, forget I said anything. Who wants to watch the magic box?"

Bolt and Mittens exchanged glances.

"Alright, rodent, I know you're hiding something. What is it?" Mittens demanded, stepping forward.

"Nothing! I know nothing, you hear?"

"Rhino, we've been together for almost 2 months now. We know you're lying."

"It doesn't matter. I'll never tell you, you hear me?"

Mittens casually sat down behind him, resting her front legs on Rhino's ball. Rhino suddenly realized he couldn't move his ball at all. He looked straight up through the clear plastic, to see Mittens' smirking face staring down at him. He suddenly felt very small.

"Well, you could tell us now. Or we could wait all day." She yawned, as if to accentuate her point. He suddenly realized he couldn't move his ball.

Rhino mumbled something unintelligible, which made Mittens smirk. She knew his weakness: it was doing nothing. Surprisingly, the fat hamster couldn't sit very still if he wasn't watching the magic box, and she knew it. This was exactly what she did to him after he particularly irked her once on the trip. He almost went mad.

"Insidious feline…" he muttered. Mittens smiled back.

"You could just spill the beans, ya know. It'll make things a lot easier."

"I must regretfully decline," Rhino stated proudly. Mittens shrugged and laid her head to rest on Rhino's ball. Bolt walked over in front of Rhino and bent down so he was looking at him eye to eye.

"Come on, Rhino. You can tell us. We promise we won't tell."

Rhino looked conflicted for a moment, but in the end, he shook his head.

"Sorry, Bolt. There are some secrets that must remain secrets, for the sake of everyone."

Now Bolt was curious to know what Rhino was hiding. He was pretty sure it had something to do with Penny, which made him all the more intrigued. But despite Mittens' best efforts, Rhino was proving to be resilient. He had eventually fallen silent and sat down, in a somewhat meditative state. It was getting rather boring to see him so…so not irked.

"Mittens, maybe we should just let him go. I don't think he's going to tell us anything…" Bolt whispered, his ears drooping. She turned her head back towards him and smirked.

"What's wrong, Wags? Giving up so soon? What happened to the indomitable canine I used to know?" she teased. Bolt did a double take, before sheepishly grinning back. He playfully pushed her with his nose onto her back. They laughed, in a way only a couple would. Mittens rolled over and playfully swatted his nose with a paw. He made a big show of it, yelping in mock pain and clutching his nose with his paws, inciting even more laughter from both of them.

"Okay, okay, we should stop," Mittens finally said, between giggles. She sat back up, blushing under her fur. It was going to be a while before she would get used to having her best friend as a…

…_Oh, right._

A mate. What she really wanted, was to be his mate. To have a bond stronger than any other in the world. The problem was that he was so, absolutely clueless. He knew about his newfound feelings, but if she told him what the underlying implications were—what being mates really meant—he could potentially freak out.

_Or he could just be as clueless as ever and just go along with it. _Something told her it would be the latter, which would be good for her. Her face grew slightly hot at the thought. Still, she felt guilty that their relationship would prevent the both of them from having offspring. To her, it didn't matter too much. But for Bolt…she didn't know what he wanted, really. Would he be fine without having children?

"Hey Mittens? You okay over there? You're spacing out again," Bolt said.

"Oh? It's nothing, Wags."

"Come on, Mitts," Bolt whined. "You already promised, remember? No more secrets." His head dipped, and he looked at Mittens with big, pleading brown eyes. It was too much for her.

"Okay, okay! I'll tell ya," she said in surrender. "I'll tell ya." She hoped she wasn't going to regret doing this.

"I—" she stopped, her mouth falling open.

"What's wrong?" Bolt asked. He didn't need to wait for an answer. He could see it for himself. More rather, he couldn't see it.

Rhino was gone. The ball had been opened, leaving no trace of the hamster.

"But...how?" Mittens asked out loud. She didn't think something so fat and loud could be so quiet.

Just then, the phone—something that had become quite an irritant of late—rang loudly, making both Mittens and Bolt jump. After a beat, Bolt nosed the receiver off the hook, and tapped the biggest button, which was the speakerphone button. He'd seen Penny do the same action many times, often because she was too lazy to actually pick up the receiver herself.

"Hello?" he asked. Mittens smacked herself in the face with a paw.

"Bolt, it's not like whoever's on the other end can actually understand what you're saying, ya know."

"Oh."

"_Actually, I can understand you perfectly," _came a voice on the other end of the line. Both of them jumped again; their mouths dropped open as well. This must have been some sort of joke. Nobody really knew where they lived, much less any other animal. Besides, how would they even know how to operate a phone? Only one animal they knew could do that, and that was…

"…Rhino," Mittens said.

"_Yes, cat. It is I. You two lovebirds were careless, and you let your prey get away." _He laughed evilly over the line. Mittens rolled her eyes at his little 'performance'.

"Haha, very funny. Now seriously, where did you go?"

"_Sorry, feline, but I have no intention of being found out, for then my secrets would be ultimately revealed! Of course, that is provided you can actually find me."_

"How are you even calling us?" Bolt asked, puzzled.

"_Penny's phone, Bolt," _Rhino replied patiently.

"I thought it fell into the river," Bolt said, wincing slightly at the memory. One of his large ears dipped slightly, which didn't go unnoticed by Mittens. She gently rubbed the side of her head on his cheek as a sign of comfort.

"_It's fine, actually. Well, I can't talk for too long, lest you trace this call."_

With that, the line went dead. Mittens was silent a moment.

"He doesn't actually think we can trace him, right?" Bolt asked.

"That's it. Come on Bolt, we're going to find him." Mittens started storming off.

"Um…Mitts? I think you might be getting a little too worked up over—"

"—I want to know what he's hiding. You want to know too, don't you?" she asked, looking at him. He thought about it for a while, but finally acquiesced when his curiosity got the better of him. Rhino had never hidden _anything _from him before. He would always report anything and everything to Bolt, sometimes to his slight annoyance. It had to be something important if he was trying to hide it.

"Let's find us a rodent," he said, grinning.

The house was eerily silent, but Bolt and Mittens couldn't hear a single squeak from Rhino. Even Bolt's ridiculously large ears couldn't pick up a single step that the hamster made. They had searched the living room, the dining room, the kitchen…just about anywhere Rhino could have hidden. It soon became apparent that conventional sniffing out wasn't going to work. They would have to take their game to the next level. Bolt led Mittens back into the living room, where the rays of afternoon sun poured through the open window.

"…Are you sure this will work?" Mittens asked, slightly skeptical. Bolt shrugged.

"It's worked on my show."

"And that's why I don't trust it," Mittens replied, sighing.

"Come on, Mitts. It's all logical, when you think about it. He used Penny's phone, which means that if we can hack into the satellite tracking systems above, we can triangulate his position with accurate precision," Bolt said proudly. Mittens could do nothing but stare, jaws wide open.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Maybe," Bolt said coyly.

Mittens narrowed her eyes, but said nothing in response. Bolt took her silence as consent, wagging his tail happily. Leading her over to the living room phone, he nosed the receiver off the hook, a glint in his eyes.

"So, explain this convoluted plan of yours again?" Mittens asked, sighing.

"When you call someone, their phone rings. If Rhino still has the phone with him, all we need to do is listen out for him, and we can find him."

Mittens stared back, impressed.

"What happened to hacking satellites?"

"I was kidding," Bolt replied with his doggish grin. Mittens pushed him. Bolt started laughing.

"Hey, I didn't spend five years on the set for nothing. They did teach me some useful things."

"Like how to run straight into a glass window?" Mittens asked, grinning. Bolt stopped laughing and looked back indignantly, before glancing at the phone, which was still humming; waiting for a number to be entered.

"So, uh…do you know what Penny's number is?" he asked sheepishly. Mittens sighed.

"And here I thought you had it all figured out."

"Hey, Penny was the one who'd plan all this out. I was just good at destroying stuff."

"No kidding," Mittens replied flatly.

Hold on, I think she wrote down somewhere." The notebook that Bolt used to call Penny's mom yesterday caught his eye, and he quickly flipped it open with a paw. Almost instantly, he brightened.

"This is her number," he declared.

"How do you know that?"

"I can't read, but I recognize this sequence of numbers. Penny always gave them to other people during combined covert operations for communication purposes."

"That's…nice," Mittens said, understanding very little of that sentence.

"Now, all I have to do is to match up the numbers that look alike…" he started pressing the digits in with his nose, one by one, extremely slowly, alternating his gaze between the phone and the book. After a moment of hesitation, he pushed the final digit in.

As first, there was nothing. No sound to indicate it was working. But then, ever so faintly, a low humming sound emanated from somewhere above. It was no ringtone, but the normally almost unnoticeable vibrations could be heard quite clearly in the silence of the house.

"Target locked. Let's move in," Bolt said, grinning. It was a look Mittens couldn't quite decipher. It was ridiculous, she knew, but deep down inside, she had a bad feeling about this, like a premonition of the future. It was like a sixth sense, and she had learned to trust it quite a bit.

_No, I'm just overreacting. He just wants to play around._

"Hey Mitts, come on! He's going to get away like this!" Bolt called, already at the stairs. Mittens gulped, hoping she was right.

* * *

Bolt pounced into Penny's room, his eyes sharpened to catch a glimpse of a fleeing rodent. His tail stood at attention, occasionally moving back and forth like radar scanning an area. Mittens strode in soon after, looking a little more uneasy than Bolt expected. He wanted to know why, but finding Rhino came first. His gaze soon fell onto the black Android phone, vibrating silently on the covers of the bed.

"He's not here," Bolt finally said, disappointed. Mittens' ear twitched, and she turned around, looking out the door. She thought she heard something. _It's nothing, _she thought initially.

"He must have known…" Bolt said, the realization dawning upon him. "This is what he meant by 'tracing the call'. I shouldn't have underestimated him."

"Uh huh," Mittens replied blankly, still staring at the hallway. Her instincts called out to her again, telling her that something was amiss. But still, her eyesight didn't lie. There was no one there—

_Wait a minute._

Mittens saw the leaf of a potted plant down the hallway rustle. Normally that would have been ordinary, but there was absolutely no breeze blowing through the house at the moment, which meant that there was no reason for it to have moved, unless…

Without telling Bolt, she sprang towards the plant and pounced on it, hoping to find Rhino hiding in there. The leaves ticked her fur, but otherwise did little to stop her. She moved her paw around, but he wasn't in there. Still, her efforts paid off. In the corner of her eye, she saw Rhino at the bottom of the stairs. He looked up at her, and then behind himself, and then back at her again, a smirk on his face. Pretty bold move, she thought. She could be down there in five seconds.

_Actually, three. _She leapt down the stairs, taking two at a time. Her eyes were focused only on Rhino, nothing else. Oddly, he seemed pleased by that fact. He turned on his heels and walked; not ran, but walked calmly away. Mittens didn't know why, and she didn't get the chance to think. As she touched the second last step with her front paws, she suddenly found herself airborne, as if someone had grabbed her legs and tossed it upwards. There was a moment of weightlessness, and then she found herself yelping as she hit the carpet with a thud.

_Mittens!_

Bolt heard the sound of her hitting the ground, and immediately reacted. Or overreacted, in this case. He rushed out of the room and down the hallway, looking around frantically for her. His worst fears were realized when he saw her at the foot of the stairs, groaning in what he believed completely to be pain. He immediately assumed the worst. Without even watching where he was going, he rushed down the stairs…

"Ah!"

…and predictably, tripped at the exact same spot that Mittens did. He yelped as well, doing a complete flip in the air before landing on Mittens. They both yelped, more out of surprise than actual pain. He landed on her, but managed to steady himself with his paws in time so his full weight wouldn't crush her.

"Wags, what are you doing?" Mittens asked, slightly alarmed. She turned on her back with Bolt still on top of her, so they were in rather 'suggestive' positions. Bolt felt his face grow hot at seeing Mittens so close to him in this position, although he didn't know why.

"Um…I'm helping?"

"Perfect timing," Rhino said, from beside them. They both turned their heads to look at him, wondering what he meant. At that precise moment, there was a click as the door was unlocked and swung open, revealing Penny and her mom. They took one look at Bolt and Mittens, before both their mouths dropped.

And for a moment, all was silent. Penny and her mom were dumbstruck, while Bolt and Mittens were frozen stiff. Only Rhino stood calmly, smirking widely.

"Wow," Penny said, with a glint in her eyes. She walked over and knelt next to her dog who, mortified, was backing away from Mittens slightly. Penny could almost see his face turning red. His ears were flattened on his head, and his tail was tucked between his legs. He was nervous, all right.

_Silly pup…_

After a beat, she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Bolt yipped in surprise, not expecting the action. Penny loosened her grip on him, looking at him with a coy smile on her face.

"Don't worry, I already know. I'm so proud of you, Bolt."

Bolt heard her clearly, but the words didn't process in the slightest. It took a slight nudge from Mittens before he calmed down enough to actually understand what she meant. And when he did, he looked up in surprise, only one question in mind. Penny however, already knew what he was thinking.

"I saw the both of you this morning." Penny's smile widened. "I think you might remember this?" she pulled out a photo from her pocket. Upon seeing it, both Bolt and Mittens felt themselves blush under their fur. In the picture, Bolt had one paw over Mittens small body, both of them pressed comfortably against each other while they were both fast asleep. Mr. Carrot sat fittingly on top of Bolt's head.

"Um…" Bolt couldn't think of anything to say.

"Thanks for keeping them busy, Rhino," Penny said. Rhino saluted back.

"Wait, what? Rhino, what does she mean?" Mittens asked.

"I was supposed to employ diversionary tactics while Penny and her mom went to get that." He pointed to Penny's mom, who was holding the box.

"But why the secrecy?" Bolt asked, genuinely confused. Rhino stared back, surprised.

"You really don't know?"

Bolt shook his head.

"Oh, this should be good." Rhino squeaked to get Penny's attention. She looked down. Rhino motioned to Bolt while shaking his head at the same time. Penny looked at Bolt, who was still completely lost. Penny seemed to get it, and when she did, she couldn't resist grinning.

"Come on, Bolty. Don't tell me you've forgotten?"

"Okay, that's it." Mittens swiped Rhino up with her front paws and held him in front of her face. "Tell me what's going on, or I'll wring it outta you myself."

"Calm down, cat. Don't get so angry. Look, I'll tell you." He motioned for her to lean forward. Uncertain, Mittens complied, bringing Rhino close to her ear. He whispered three words; words that Bolt couldn't hear despite having ridiculously large ears. The moment Mittens heard them, she dropped Rhino onto the carpet, her eyes widening. She looked at Bolt, her mouth open slightly.

"Not you too Mittens…" Bolt whined. "What is it?"

"Bolt, it's…"

Penny's mom, who had been watching silently, decided that it was the right time. Setting the box down on the ground, she opened it. With a single tug at the corner, the sides of the box fell open outwards, revealing a large cheesecake.

"Happy birthday, Bolt."

Bolt's head jerked upwards, looking up at her. He'd completely forgotten about it. This was the first time ever since he was on the set that he'd ever celebrated his birthday properly. All the other times, he'd been too preoccupied with protecting Penny to actually remember his own birthday. He felt like someone had pulled a rug from under his feet. It was no wonder then; all of Rhino's antics today were just so that Penny could surprise him.

"My…birthday." He said it slowly, almost in disbelief. But soon, his look of disbelief turned into an embarrassed grin at forgetting his own special day.

"Happy birthday, hero." Bolt guided his gaze downwards, to see Rhino saluting him proudly. "I couldn't ask for anything more than what you've already given me. It's been an honor to have stood by your side all this time."

"Rhino…" Bolt knew that he meant every word. He bent down, and with the gentlest of motions, nuzzled Rhino with his head, for the first time ever since they met. "It's been an honor for me too. Thank you."

Rhino nodded, smiling. Inwardly, he was surprised: he never expected Bolt to do something like that. It was a welcome surprise.

"Wags…" a soft voice whispered.

Bolt paused. He knew who it was. Slowly, he turned to face the one he loved. She looked uneasy, for more than one reason. Bolt tilted his head slightly, one of his ears dipping as well.

"Mitts…"

"I'm sorry. I didn't know it was your birthday. I didn't get you a gift, and…" Before she could go any further, Bolt leaned forward and licked her across her cheek. Mittens stopped moving.

"Mitts, you've already given me the best gift." After a moment, he said: "I love you."

Mittens had nothing left to say. She could feel the warmth in her own heart growing. Those three words…she thought she'd never hear them again ever since she was abandoned. The once empty hole in her heart had now been filled; filled with the love that Bolt and Penny had given her. And with Bolt, everything felt so right, even though logic demanded that it was wrong. If that was the case, there was no reason why she shouldn't love him back with all her heart.

She had opened her heart again, and finally, at long last, she was perfectly fine with it.

They looked into each other's eyes. A smile was growing on Mittens' face.

"I love you too, Wags," she said softly. She leaned forward and nuzzled Bolt under his chin, purring contently. Bolt returned her nuzzling with his own, his eyes closing in bliss at the affection he was receiving. They didn't notice the three people watching them, exchanging knowing glances with each other. Penny tucked a tuft of hair behind her ears, clearing her throat. When Mittens heard that, she was suddenly snapped back to reality. She suddenly remembered.

_Penny._

She stopped nuzzling Bolt and looked at Penny with wide eyes. She couldn't believe she'd forgotten all about it. This was the moment she'd been dreading since yesterday. How would Penny ever agree to this? She…she was Bolt's person. Surely she wanted Bolt to have a normal relationship with some other dog. She wouldn't…

Mittens yelped in surprise as Penny grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to her chest. She looked up at Penny, her eyes still darting back and forth nervously. Penny ruffled the fur on Bolt's head with one hand, and rested her other hand on Mittens.

"You know, I always wondered when you would fall in love with someone," she said, looking at Bolt. "I never thought that it would be with Mittens, though." She giggled.

Mittens felt her head dip slightly.

"It's okay, Mittens. I don't mind," Penny said, as if reading her thoughts. She stroked Mittens affectionately, the black cat in her arms refusing to believe what she had just said. But eventually, Mittens slowly relaxed, while Penny looked at her with a reassuring smile.

"I'm glad that Bolt found someone to love. I'm happy for you both. Take care of him, okay? But in exchange, I want you to tell me everything. Everything that happened when Bolt ran away from the studio, and…how the two of you…" she winked, letting the sentence hang.

Mittens didn't know what to say. Even if she knew, she couldn't say it anyway. The only thing she could do was nod, and smile sheepishly back. Penny kissed her on the head affectionately before setting her back on the ground. It was a first for Mittens, to be kissed like that. She reminded her of him...

_No, Mittens. Penny is your new person now. Get over him._

She shook her head, banishing those thoughts, as Penny's mom lighted the seven candles on the cake.

"Seven years old, buddy. You're all grown up now…" she said it proudly, like how her own mom would say it. Bolt jumped on Penny and licked her wildly.

"Oh—hey! Bolt!" She laughed as his tongue tickled her skin. "Guess some things don't change, huh?" Bolt yapped in approval, prancing around Penny elatedly. He felt like his life was finally complete. He had his person, a family, and someone who loved him. He couldn't ask for anything more. At least, that was what he thought.

He couldn't even imagine that just a few days later, his life would be changed completely, in a way he never expected.

"It's the same cheesecake you and Bolt ate in Vegas," Rhino suddenly said to Mittens. It took a moment, but it finally clicked in her head. She looked at him.

"You mean the honey cheesecake?" Memories of that night flooded into her head: The food, the fireworks…it made her nostalgic.

"Yeah," Rhino replied, nodding.

Mittens was amazed at his powers of recollection. But then again, she supposed that if he could remember all of Bolt's tv episodes by heart, it wasn't too much of a stretch to assume he could remember that little fact.

"You might want to ask him soon," Rhino said. "Like maybe now."

Mittens wasn't surprised Rhino knew what she was thinking anymore. Either he was a genius, or she was just really poor at hiding her emotions and thoughts. It didn't really matter either way.

"Okay, okay. I'll ask him." She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. It was more out of excitement than fear.

"Oh, Mittens? Turn around," Rhino said.

Puzzled, Mittens did as she was told. The moment she did, she found her lips locked with Bolt's. it stunned her for a moment, but she soon found herself closing her eyes and returning the passionate kiss. Everything in her mind fell away as she felt Bolt's soft lips making contact with hers. There was no need to worry about them being mates. For now, she would just enjoy the moment of passion and savour it. There would always be time to talk about it later.

_Maybe tonight..._

There was a click, and a photo was taken. Penny held it proudly in her hands. A picture of Bolt and Mittens, kissing in front of seven lighted candles. She smiled, proud of it.

"That's a keeper."


	20. Truth and Secrets I

**A/N: **I'm touched that all of you have been so patient with me, even though I disappeared for so long. This is my last week of school, so I might need some time to collect and arrange homework for the holidays. In short, next update probably won't be in a week, although it won't take a month (that much I hope).

Thanks to Aronim, chimpking, hidenbro67, dogman15, Mike101, Mildirk, and Carl Minez for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 20: Truth and Secrets I**

"_I'd love to say that all happy things last forever, that we live in a perfect world, untainted by evil. Unfortunately, we both__know that's not true. There's an ever-growing force that encroaches in the shadows, waiting to strike when it hurts the most. It happens to everybody. It's just a matter of 'when'. Wouldn't you agree…Penny?"_

* * *

"…three!"

He sighed, rolling his eyes while he stretched his arms.

"…two!"

He glanced at his wrist, where he wore a simple leather watch. It ticked slowly.

"…one!"

He let his body go limp. The blood was rushing to his head, but he didn't care. He didn't even have the energy to bother to move. The deep throbbing grew in intensity, until he felt a gentle smack on his stomach. He lazily opened his eyes.

"Daddy! What are you doing!" Penny asked angrily. Unfortunately, as a seven year old, the smack didn't hurt and she ended up looking cute. Penny's dad laughed.

"I'm hiding. What does it look like I'm doing?"

"But you're lying upside down on the couch!" Penny whined.

"Exactly. The perfect disguise." He winked.

Penny pouted.

"Come on sweetie, don't pout. You know me and mommy don't like to see you pout."

Penny continued pouting, turning her head away in the process.

"Alright, that's it." He shifted his body so that he was lying on his side on the couch, then grabbed Penny with both arms, pulling her right next to him. She yelped in surprise, but it quickly turned into laughter when he started violently tickling her.

"D-daddy! Stop it!" Penny barely managed between squeals of laughter.

"Still wanna pout, Penny?"

"No, no! I'll stop, I'll stop! Please…!" she wheezed. At that moment, he did, and the small body of Penny fell limp in his arms. Not that she minded. He was warm, comforting…safe. Still catching her breath, she snuggled into his chest.

"Daddy, that's not how you play hide-and-seek. You're supposed to hide from me," she said softly.

He laughed a gentle laugh, something that Penny loved to hear.

"Sorry sweetie, but daddy's feeling a little down today." He closed his eyes, resting his head on an arm.

"Why? What happened?"

He cracked open an eyelid.

"Well, it's an interesting story really. See, I was at work with Carl, and he called me a—ow!" He looked up, to see his wife glaring at him.

"Jack, I don't think that story is appropriate for her."

He rolled his brown eyes again. Penny giggled.

"Honestly Jack, it's hard to imagine you're a father considering you act so immaturely. It's going to be a bad example for her."

"Mommy, don't make fun of daddy! He's the best!" Penny defended.

"Now look what you've done," Penny's mom said. Her dad just laughed, before stretching his hand out to the coffee table next to the sofa. He grabbed a Polaroid camera and snapped a picture of Penny and himself on the sofa. When the photo came out, he carefully removed and examined it in the light.

"Hm…that's a keeper," he finally said contentedly.

"Let me see! I wanna see!" The little girl tried to grab the photo, but her dad pulled it out of her reach.

"Penelope, remember what I told you yesterday?"

She sighed, then repeated in a monotone voice: "You have to be patient and polite when you want something." She added with a grumble under her breath: "I don't like being called Penelope…"

The mumbled words didn't go unheard by her dad. He chuckled, tousling her soft copper hair.

"It's the name we gave you. You would do good to remember this, Penny. Always be proud of who you are. And…don't let other people tell you what you can be. You can be anybody you want to be."

"Even a famous tv star?" she asked, her eyes widening hopefully.

He nuzzled his forehead on hers, making her giggle.

"Yes, even a Hollywood star."

"If I become a star, you'd come to see me get an award, right daddy?"

"Of course. You know I always keep my promises."

Little Penny brightened, her eyes widening. She wrapped her small arms around her dad's waist, closing her eyes as she squeezed him tight.

"You're the best, daddy."

Penny's mom watched, amused, as she saw her two favourite people being chummy with each other. She sat down on the arm of the sofa as Penny jumped up excitedly all of a sudden.

"Daddy! Does that mean you'll get me a doggy like you promised?"

The parents exchanged glances.

"When did I promise that?" he asked.

"You know, that night, when Uncle Joe and some people came over, and you were sitting at your desk with your head on your table. I know you promised! Uncle Joe heard you say it too," Penny said confidently.

Jack groaned inwardly. He remembered that night well. He was almost exhausted to death from work, and he only vaguely remembered some people coming over for…something. If that was the case, then Penny was probably right.

_Oh boy. _He thought about it for a long while, fiddling with the camera in his hands. Penny waited anxiously for his answer. Finally, he looked up, right into her eyes.

"Okay, I'll get you a dog." Penny cheered, but her father raised a hand to stop her.

"Now hold on, Penny. Taking care of a dog is a big responsibility. I need to see if you can take up that responsibility."

Penny didn't exactly understand what he meant, but she was pretty it meant that she wasn't going to get a dog. Her shoulders sagged. Penny's dad continued.

"If you can show me that you can be a responsible little girl, I'll get you a dog. What do you say, Penny?"

Penny still had no idea what 'responsibility' meant, but the prospect of getting a dog was enough to make her agree instantly.

"What do I need to do?" she asked. Her dad pondered it over for a while, like someone deciding what riddle to ask. The suspense was killing her. She was willing to do just about anything her seven-year-old mind could think of.

Finally, he snapped his fingers, and Penny knew he'd thought of something.

"I'm going to give you my camera, and I want you to take care of it. Properly. If you can do that, you can have one. Okay?" he extended his camera to her.

Penny almost couldn't believe it. His camera? That was his most prized possession. She remembered him cleaning it almost religiously every day, taking it apart, putting it back together…she would sometimes see him going around the house just to look for things to take photos of. The only time she'd ever seen him angry was when a stranger accidentally bumped into him and made him drop his camera.

"Daddy, you're giving it to me?" she asked. He nodded.

As if she were receiving an extremely fragile item, Penny slowly grasped it with her small hands, a smile growing on her face.

"Wow…it's heavy." She spent a few more minutes gazing intently at it, examining every angle possible. She eventually faced the front of the camera towards herself, looking into the lens, her inquisitive mind already wondering how it worked. She tilted the camera, and to her surprise she heard a click, and a photo started printing out of the camera. It took a lot of restraint for her not to drop it in surprise. She heard laughter from beside her, and she quickly turned her head. Her father was smiling away, his finger still hovering near the button. He reached out and took the photo from her.

"Hmm…not bad. Not bad. What do you think, Penny?" he asked teasingly. Penny, looked at the photo in his hands. A close-up of her face looked back, surprised, at her. She couldn't help but laugh at her ridiculous look. Soon, all three of them were laughing in the coolness of that old autumn day.

Penny's dad lifted Penny onto his lap and wrapped an arm around her, kissing her on the cheek. What Penny didn't know, was that he'd already made up his mind about getting a dog, even before he laid out his terms and conditions. Their family was going to be larger by one member very soon.

"My little Penny," he whispered, caressing her in his arms.

_My little Penny._

* * *

"Hey, Mittens. Mittens, are you awake?"

The faint voice rolled around in Mittens head incessantly. She tried to push it away, but it did not relent. Finally giving up, she cracked open her eyes. She saw the faint outline of Bolt as he stood next to her on Penny's bed. But before she could say a single word, the whole world suddenly became white. A deafening noise erupted inside her eardrums, and she jumped up in fright. And just as abruptly as it came, the white light was gone. The room was dark; almost pitch black, and a low rumble emanated from outside.

_It's…raining…_

Although she couldn't see it that clearly, from the sound of it, the rain was coming down very harshly. It pelted the windows harshly, to the point that Mittens thought it would break. Uneasily, she averted her eyes from the window. Bolt sat right in front of her, with a worried gaze.

"Mittens…"

"What's wrong, Wags?" Mittens asked, trying to regain some of her composure. Bolt dipped his head a little, and with that little action, he didn't need to say anything. It was clear that he was distressed, and Mittens had a feeling she knew what was troubling him.

"I…I can't sleep," he whimpered.

Mittens cocked her head, concerned.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm…scared." Just as he said that, lightning flashed again, and he screwed his eyes shut in fear. Instantly Mittens knew, and she didn't blame him. The rain and wind did look like they could topple a tree or even level a house…something she wasn't keen on thinking about. She suddenly realized he was trembling. She brushed her head against his side, whispering to him softly.

"It's okay. I gotcha."

Bolt slowly opened his eyes again as the thunder rumbled, thankfully softer than he expected. He nodded and licked Mittens gently in return, feeling a sense of security. Even though she was much smaller than him, Bolt always managed to find emotional comfort in her, the little black cat. Back when they were on the way to find Penny, Bolt expressed—several times—a few insecurities about himself, but Mittens was always there for him. Now they were closer than ever before, but she was still the same caring feline that he knew.

Bolt glanced at Penny and Rhino in the corner of his eye, wondering if they were watching the two of them rub affectionately against each other (which would have been rather embarrassing), but they apparently were still fast asleep, seemingly unperturbed by the gale outside. Then, he heard Mittens softly whisper to him from below his chin.

"Let's go downstairs, Wags. A little walk will help calm ya down."

Bolt looked back outside the window. He couldn't help but imagine being out there in the storm, and he shuddered at the thought. Being careful not to shift the bed too much, both of them jumped to the ground and quietly padded out of the room.

The house was completely dark, except for a faint light coming from the kitchen that Penny's mom left on. Still, they were able to see clearly enough without it. They treaded carefully down the stairs, the roar of the rain and the rumbling of the thunder drowning out their footsteps. It wasn't long before they arrived at the living room sofa. They both jumped up and sat down next to each other. Almost instantly their attention was turned to the window right next to the silent tv.

"I've never seen rain this heavy before," Mittens said quietly.

"Me neither…" Bolt said, trailing off.

He suddenly found himself gulping at the last word he said. Something in him told him that it wasn't true. He'd seen this sort of rain once before. A long time ago, in the very same house they were living in. He never thought he'd have to remember that day again.

"Actually, I have," he slowly said. The sudden change in tone surprised Mittens. She looked at Bolt questioningly.

"When?"

"Here. I think it was here. It was raining too. I remember it well. Penny…it was because of Penny."

"What happened?" Now Mittens was curious, if not a little troubled at seeing Bolt's unease.

"I don't remember. I think I was too young back then. The only thing I remember was that Penny…she was sad. Very sad."

* * *

A tear ran down her cheek. Gasping, she opened her eyes, her body stiff. The ceiling stared back at her, briefly illuminated by a flash of lightning. It was exactly the same. Exactly the same, all those nights ago…a distant memory now.

Penny unclenched her fists, which she didn't realize had been tightly clenched to the point they turned white. As the blood slowly flowed back in, she relaxed her body, taking deep breaths in an attempt to regain her composure. The darkness seemed to envelop her, shrouding her in a veil of grief. The rain had brought back memories; memories of that night, and the ones that followed. Slowly, she sat up in her bed. It took a moment to process, but she finally noticed Bolt and Mittens weren't there. Only Rhino was there near the edge of the bed, sleeping in his ball like he always did.

_They're probably downstairs…_

A thought suddenly came to her. She wondered if Bolt was alright. That night, it had been raining too. It had threatened to blow the windows wide open and shatter the glass. Thankfully, neither happened, but the memory now burned fresh in her mind, seeing an almost identical example of that night right before her eyes.

She pulled the blanket further up her body, feeling a shiver down her back. The memory always did that to her, although she hadn't remembered it ever since she first left the same house for Hollywood. She supposed it was only logical it would come back now that she was home again.

_Home…_The memory was clear now. Clearer than she ever remembered it. Indescribable feelings, feelings she thought she'd never have to face ever again. Why did she even choose to come back here? There were so many places she could have chosen to move into after leaving Hollywood, but she decided to return to the place where it all began.

Maybe it was because she promised herself that she'd never give up.

With everything coming back so clearly, she had to do this. She threw off the covers and got to her feet, a sudden wave of emotion bursting through her. What she forgot, was that Rhino's ball was resting on the edge of the blanket, and his ball—with him inside—was thrown off with the blanket and hit the floor with an audible thump.

It took her a moment to process the sound, but when she did, her eyes widened.

"Ah!" Penny gasped softly, suddenly realizing her mistake. She quickly dashed over to where the ball fell and scooped it up. Inside, Rhino teetered around, dazed at the sudden rollercoaster ride he was given. Penny opened the ball and pulled him out, cradling him with her hands.

"I'm sorry! Are you okay, Rhino?"

Still wobbly, Rhino nodded in affirmative. He shook his head once, looked around the room, and then glanced back at Penny quizzically. The look said it all. It was three in the morning; not exactly a normal time to be awake.

"I'm sorry. I needed to see something. I…" she paused a moment. "I'll be back soon. You should go back to sleep."

Rhino shook his head, placing a tiny paw on Penny's wrist. It was dark, and Penny could barely see him. He used his other paw to trace letters on her palm. Even though Penny couldn't see it clearly due to the lack of light, she could feel the letters being drawn.

_I…go…with…you…_

She figured as much. Since he wasn't moving, that's what she assumed he said.

"You want to follow me?" Penny asked, for confirmation. Rhino nodded. Smiling, Penny stroked him with a soft hand.

"Alright. I think I need someone to talk to anyway. Thanks." As she walked out of the room with Rhino in her hands, he noticed that his two best friends weren't there.

_Where are they…?_

Penny walked past her mom's room, to a third, unused room. It was the only unused room in the house. Normally, she would have kept it along with all the rest in the attic, but she vowed never to let it go forgotten or lost like some of the others, so she purposely put it in the empty room with all the other memories she held. Slowly, she opened the closed door and swung it open. At first, Rhino saw nothing but black. It was even darker than the other rooms. But then, Penny flicked a switch on the wall, and a small lamp hummed to life, the bulb slowly warming up as it grew in intensity. The bulb was still weak, so it barely lighted up the room, but it was still enough.

_I've never been in here before, _Rhino thought. The room was usually closed.

"It's a guest room. We don't really use it anymore. A long time ago, I used to play in here."

Rhino waited, but nothing came after that. He knew there was more to that sentence; Penny wasn't telling him something. She walked over to the end of the room, next to the lamp. Under the window stood a treasure chest. Upon closer inspection, Rhino realized it was just a large wooden box, painted and decorated to look like a treasure chest.

She set Rhino down on the wooden desk next to the box. Kneeling down, she unlatched it and lifted it open. Rhino expected to see a cloud of dust rise from inside the box, but it didn't happen. Apparently the box had been used frequently enough. Penny slowly lifted out a thin photo album and placed it gently on the table, next to Rhino. She sat in the roller chair, staring at the cover for a moment.

It was a simple design. A brown cover, with several star-shaped stickers pasted here and there. From the looks of it, Rhino could tell that it was rather old already. He looked to Penny, waiting for an explanation. He sensed that there was more to this story. There was something going on with Penny, something that had been triggered recently. Bolt's birthday apparently had been the catalyst. Even when she had devised with him a plan to surprise Bolt, he could sense something was amiss with her.

Apparently, he was going to find out.

* * *

Silence had fallen between them as Bolt said that last sentence. The phrase 'silence is louder than words' seemed to pop into Mittens' head at that point. But even though they were silent, nature wasn't. The rain was still coming down strong. They couldn't even see past the wall of water on the window. The window pane started rattling due to a strong gust of wind outside, and Bolt's ears and tail stood at attention for a long while before—cautiously—relaxing.

Whether it was the weather or the memory that had Bolt worried, Mittens knew she had to distract him from it. She quickly thought of something to say.

"Um, Bolt?"

Bolt blinked, snapped out of his thoughts.

"Y-yes, Mittens?"

"I did want to tell you something yesterday, but I think we both kinda forgot about it."

The change of subject did seem to have an effect on Bolt. It seemed to calm him, even if only a little. He thought about what she said, his tail drifting back and forth slowly.

"Oh yeah, I think I remember now. When we were looking for Rhino…so what is it?" he asked. Mittens opened her mouth to speak, but no words came; not when she processed it a second time.

_Wait, I'm really going to tell him about this? Here? Now? Like…like this? _She felt faint.

"Mitts? Hey, Mitts! Are you okay?" Bolt waved a paw in front of her face.

Mittens groaned inwardly. Her heart pounded in her chest. _Guess there's nothing to it. Here goes…_

"Bolt, do you love me?"

"Of course!" he replied cheerily, his tail suddenly coming to life by beating back and forth rapidly. Mittens sighed inwardly and gulped: it was going to be even harder this way.

"Do you know why you love me?" she asked. She felt kind of bad, putting it like this. He didn't really deserve to have love explained to him like this, but he still had a right to know.

"Uh…" he looked stumped by the question. "I love you because I love you?" he grinned sheepishly. At that moment, Mittens wished she could just take back everything, to just live together forever in ignorant bliss. But it was too late to turn back now. She forced a smile, trying to look straight into his brown eyes.

"I…Wags…thanks. But you know, what you feel…there's a reason for it."

Bolt looked intrigued, looking at her eagerly. Already Mittens was deeply regretting this. This was one lesson that if given the choice, she would rather not teach.

"It's…"

* * *

_Her father._

The album had been opened, and almost instantly Rhino knew what was coming. The first thing he saw was a photo of three people, and some beautiful cursive handwriting next to it. In the picture, a man and a woman sat on a familiar sofa, cradling a three year old Penny in their arms. Rhino stared at it a long while, not moving a muscle. The man was quite tall, and had a rugged look about him. His long hair, the stubble on his chin which he didn't shave…he was surprisingly what Rhino pictured him to look like. His eyes were the same shade of brown as Penny's, and his smile was…it was just amazing.

Finally, Rhino moved, looking up at Penny. She tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear, gazing lovingly at the photo.

"This is my daddy. This album is every picture I've had of him since I was born." There was an obvious hint of melancholy in her voice.

As Rhino listened to Penny, he read the words next to the picture on the first page.

_Penny, I want you to remember that when things look down,  
You have to always smile, especially in the toughest of situations,  
And always follow your dreams and beliefs to the very end._

_Love, daddy._

Even though Rhino could read, Penny read it out to him anyway. He sensed a deep, profound sorrow that was finally rising to the surface in the cold air. It was amazing that she was able to hide it so well from everybody…years of training, he supposed. A blessing, and yet at the same time a curse.

Penny carefully flipped the page, as if scared that it would fall apart. As she did, a story began to flow from her lips. With the pounding rain and thunder, Rhino couldn't imagine an eerier setting for the story. A story told in the deafening silence of that Saturday morning.

A story, of the man who meant the world to Penny.

* * *

A/N: Any guesses on what happened to Penny's dad? Or what will happen between Bolt and Mittens?


	21. Truth and Secrets II

**A/N:** 1 year and 1 week ago, this story was published on Fanfiction. Time flies by so fast, doesn't it? I didn't get the chance to finish this chapter by that time, but I did manage to finish it by the time the 2nd chapter of this story: "Mumbo Jumbo" was posted. If you remember, I posted it right before I left for my annual family holiday. Similarly, I will be leaving for this year's family holiday in a few days, and I won't be back until Christmas. I hope you will enjoy this little chapter, which is dedicated to my editor, Arkazu.

Thanks to SolarRuby17, Carl Minez, Mojotheamoroq, Bane767, Dogman15, Mike101, and Aronim for reviewing.

Happy belated anniversary, A.L.B.O.E :)

* * *

**Chapter 21: Truth and Secrets II**

"_If there was one thing that I know about you, it's that you never give up. Even when the whole world turned on him, you didn't. Instead, you defended him vehemently, with every single breath that you had. And up to today…I can see the fire in your eyes. It's still there."_

No number of words could properly express what Rhino wanted to say. He just sat there in silence, watching each picture go by. And with each picture, he could hear—feel—the change in Penny's voice. At first, she maintained her cool, her tone unwavering. But with each picture she saw and narrated, he could feel a welling of emotions within her rising rapidly to the surface. He did not turn around to face her. He waddled over to a stationery holder and with some difficulty, pulled out the smallest pencil in the holder. Penny, understanding what he wanted, reached into the drawer next to the table for a blank piece of paper.

Rhino didn't want to ask this so soon, but the build-up had been a little too slow for his taste. He wanted to know, but he was a little worried of how it would turn out. In writing, words tended to lack the emotion, the sympathy that he so desperately wanted to give to Penny. He could tell she really needed it.

He slowly moved his tiny paws, drawing a few letters onto the paper. She had spent quite a while telling more stories of her father, and their past together. But even Rhino knew that she hadn't told him the most important story. He hoped his words were enough.

_What happened, Penny?_

Instantly he knew he'd struck a nerve. Penny's story had been interesting and heartwarming, but he knew it wasn't even close to what Penny wanted to say. There was a dam of words and feelings, ready to burst inside of her. Rhino could sense something else, too.

She wanted Bolt to be there, with her.

But before either of them could say anything, a flash of lightning blinded both of them. An instant later, it was pitch black. At first they both thought it was their eyes getting used to the sudden change in light intensity, but eventually it dawned on them that it wasn't a problem with their eyes. It was a problem with the light bulb.

The only source of light in the room had disappeared, plunging them into darkness.

* * *

_Okay…don't look awkward. Just tell it to him straight. Bolt, will you be my mate?_

She was mentally rehearsing it, but she just couldn't bring herself to say it. It was probably the most awkward topic in the world, and the fact that they were two different species didn't make it any easier.

"Do you know why you love me?" Mittens asked. She felt kind of bad, putting it like this. He didn't really deserve to have love explained to him like this, but he still had a right to know.

"Uh…" he looked stumped by the question. "I love you because I love you?" he grinned sheepishly. At that moment, Mittens wished she could just take back everything, to just live together forever in ignorant bliss. But it was too late to turn back now. She forced a smile, trying to look straight into his brown eyes.

"I…Wags…thanks. But you know, what you feel…there's a reason for it."

Bolt looked intrigued, and he looked at her eagerly. Already Mittens was deeply regretting this. This was one lesson that if given the choice, she would rather not teach.

"It's…well, it's something that everybody goes through." She couldn't believe she'd found something harder than confessing her love for the white dog. "Okay, Bolt, you know that there are boys and girls, right? Penny's a girl; I'm a girl too. You and Rhino are both boys."

"Uh huh," Bolt said, listening as intently as he could, trying not to be distracted by the gale outside.

"When it comes to people, boys and girls will fall in love with each other. But I'm guessing you know that already."

Bolt nodded, his ears twitching with every rattle of the windowpane. He had to resist turning his head to look at it. Mittens didn't seem to be too disturbed by it however, and she continued on.

"Well, when they do fall in love, they become mates. And then they sort of spend the rest of their life together. The thing is that when it comes to mates, boy dogs are supposed to be with girl dogs, and boy cats are supposed to be with girl cats…not a…boy dog and a girl cat."

Bolt remembered her saying the same thing from the night before.

"Why not?" he asked patiently.

"Um…" _It's so simple! Just say 'We can't have children'. That's it. That's all you have to say!_

But even though Mittens willed herself to, she couldn't bring herself to tell him the truth. She just couldn't.

Mercifully, nature was there to help her out. Another bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, and Bolt jumped in shock—no pun intended—from the sudden illumination. When the light finally faded away, Mittens couldn't see him, but her eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness again.

"Wags?" she asked, grateful for the last-minute save.

"I-I'm fine!" Bolt replied, but Mittens saw otherwise. He was breathing erratically, and his brown eyes were darting back and forth the room. She could see his claws digging into the couch intensely.

"You don't look so good, Bolt…"

He wanted to rebut her, but Bolt knew she was right. He just couldn't help it; he was scared. He was scared, and he hated himself for it. There was something he had been hiding from her; a tiny little secret. Even though he no longer felt the need to prove himself to anybody, he still had some lingering feelings that he just couldn't shake. He didn't want to show his weaknesses if he could help it, especially to her. He couldn't let her know:

He was still scared because of what happened in the river.

When he abruptly woke up an hour ago from a roar of thunder, he remembered his harrowing experience in the river where he almost drowned. He thought he'd gotten over it, but his heaving breathing and rapidly beating heart told him otherwise. The first thing that came to his mind was Mittens.

_I shouldn't have woken her up at all…_

He was starting to regret even waking her up in the first place. It was a careless mistake. He didn't want to let her know about his lingering fear, but it slipped his mind as the rain battered the windows mercilessly. Before he knew it, he had already called her.

"Bolt, is something wrong?" Mittens asked.

Bolt quickly snapped out of his thoughts and smiled, wagging his tail back and forth, hoping it would distract her.

"I'm fine, Mitts. I think you're worrying too much about me." He took a short pause, forcing a grin. "Guess that wouldn't be the first time."

Mittens was uncertain, but she eventually gave in and nodded. Bolt could tell she was still unconvinced.

_Maybe this was a bad idea…_both of them thought to themselves, for different reasons.

"So…uh…" Bolt said, motioning for her to continue. Mittens bit her lip, before she finally closed her eyes and sighed.

_Just tell him._

"Look, Wags, the reason why people love each other is because they want to have—"

A sudden flash of light blinded the living room, turning night into temporary day. The light made Bolt jump again, as if he'd been shocked by the lightning himself. A moment later, he heard an extremely loud roar of thunder, which drowned out the sound of the rain mercilessly attacking the windows. It was strong enough that Bolt could feel the vibrations rippling across his fur. Momentarily disoriented, he stumbled forward, trying to find his lost bearings, but ended up crashing into Mittens. They both yelped as they fell off the couch and landed on the carpeted floor.

"W-Wags! Are you okay?" Mittens asked, shocked. The first thing she realized was that the light coming from the kitchen had disappeared. The second thing she realized was that they were in another awkward position, like yesterday, except this time Bolt was on his back, and she was lying on top of him.

"Why is it that whenever I'm with you, I end up crashing into things, dragged along, and falling off stuff?" Mittens joked.

Bolt didn't really notice her comment; he was preoccupied with his thoughts. He was frantically thinking of something to say as an excuse. It was starting to become obvious that there was something wrong with him, and if Mittens were to probe further, she'd eventually find out.

_Ack! Don't panic! Act natural…act natural…wait a minute. Act? _An idea came to him. He stiffened his entire body, from his ears to his tail, and left his eyes open in a way that made him look like a frozen wax statue. If he could distract Mittens with his usual antics, maybe she'd forget all about it.

"Wags?" Mittens asked again. He forced himself to be silent. Mittens sighed.

"Guess not." She waved a paw in front of his face. Nothing. She nudged him gently. Still nothing. She raised her eyebrows now, several evil thoughts flitting around her little trick in particular came to mind, and it made her grin uncontrollably at the thought of doing it. Climbing a little bit forward on his chest, Mittens stuck her tongue out and slowly dragged it across his face, making sure to take her time to go across his sensitive nose.

Still he didn't budge, or make any sort of reaction whatsoever.

_Wow, he's good. _She thought a rough tongue across his nose would be enough to make him flinch. He wasn't even blinking, which reminded Mittens perfectly of when they first met.

"_If I stare at the lock really hard, it'll burst into flames and melt." _It seemed almost comical at this point.

As she thought of new ways to tease him, her long tail unconsciously began drifting back and forth across Bolt's lower belly. Bolt found his paw twitching at the unfamiliar, ticklish sensation in a place not many people usually touched. Laughter was building up inside him, threatening to burst from his mouth. He forced it down, but his eye was twitching as a result.

That didn't go unnoticed by Mittens. She stared at his twitching eye, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. When the cause of it dawned on her, a sadistic grin formed on her face, and she increased the frequency of the tail brushings. She could have sworn she saw fear in his eyes.

But it didn't matter.

Like a crammed suitcase finally bursting open from the pressure inside, Bolt burst into uncontrollable hysterics, laughing and writhing as Mittens continued tickling him. He tried to throw her off, but she stubbornly hung on, straddling him with her clawless paws. It was incredibly entertaining and satisfying for Mittens to see Bolt squirming like a little pup, with his four legs thrashing wildly in the air. For a moment, all their worries about the hidden truths and secrets were forgotten, and the two just laughed together.

Eventually, Bolt ran out of energy, and he just collapsed, going limp under Mittens. For the first time, she had successfully subdued Bolt. She stood on him like a proud hunter standing over her captured prey.

"Had enough?" Mittens asked teasingly.

"Y-yes…" Bolt was panting slightly, but he still managed a weak smile. Although he was smiling on the outside, he was anxious on the inside, with the rain still rattling the windows. Still, he felt pretty pleased with himself for distracting Mittens from his less than graceful fall off the couch.

_Mission accomplished, _he thought to himself.

Mittens suddenly tilted her head slightly, looking into his eyes. It was as if she was trying to read his mind. Bolt stared back wordlessly, still panting. He watched as her expression changed: her teasing smile disappeared, and she looked at him as if unsure of how to say the words.

"Bolt?"

"Y-yes?" _What is she…?_

"You weren't acting, were you?"

It took a moment, but once it hit him, it was as if whatever energy Bolt had disappeared. All the euphoria from the little tickling session they had earlier had evaporated, and a wave of dejection took its place. The words repeated in his head again, and his ears and shoulders drooped in defeat. For all his efforts, he still couldn't hide it from her.

"I…" Bolt started, feeling the lump in his throat. He turned his head away in shame. He didn't want to say it. Mittens had a hunch, anyway.

"Wags, um…" she took a short pause, thinking of how to say it, "Is this…was this because of what happened in the river?"

The second blow struck harder than the first. Bolt didn't know how, but she knew. Somehow, she knew. His last secret that he wanted to keep from her had been revealed; by her, no less.

"You…you knew?" Bolt said.

She knew she'd hit the nail on its head. That near-drowning experience three days ago had probably left him a little more than scared of water. He just didn't want to admit it, but it was still haunting him. She knew he'd been trying to hide it, but Bolt wasn't as good an actor as he thought he was.

But still, the way he said it made Mittens feel a wave of guilt wash over her. Now she was starting to feel bad for putting Bolt in this situation. He obviously didn't want her to find out about it.

"It's okay, Bolt. I…kinda already knew about it before this."

Her words didn't do much to cheer Bolt up. In fact, he looked even more down at realizing that fact. The guilt was eating Mittens out. She had to make it up to him somehow.

"Um…Bolt."

Bolt looked up at Mittens, who was still sitting on his chest. She looked a bit quieter now, as if something had finally gotten a hold of her.

"Mitts?" Bolt piped up.

Mittens continued in the same soft tone. "When a boy and a girl fall in love and become mates, they will usually have children. But we can't, Bolt. We can't. We're two completely different species. You're a dog, and I'm a cat, Bolt. It…it can't happen." She let the words hang, further accentuating the deep implications. "We'll never be able to have children. That's why we're not supposed to love each other."

Silence.

Bolt's furrow creased, and he blinked slowly as he processed the information. Mittens felt like a knife had been driven into her heart. At last, the truth had been revealed. She still didn't tell him about the act of procreation, but she knew it probably was inconsequential at this point.

"I…I'm sorry."

Bolt was silent, but he was deep in thought. Finally, he understood why Mittens was in so much conflict. The truth was, he already had a slight understanding of what mates were before this—the two cats from the studio mentioned it once or twice when they teased him. They told him he'd probably never get a mate with the way he was, although at the time he didn't understand what they meant.

_Oh Mittens…_

And yet, even though the truth had finally been revealed to him, he didn't feel much. There weren't any overwhelming feelings of sadness, or shock…or anything at all. Was he supposed to feel them?

Bolt closed his eyes and slowly lifted his head, pressing his forehead against Mittens' face above him. It surprised her for a moment, but she eventually closed her eyes and returned the favour by pressing her head against his as well, gently wrapping her tail around Bolt's fluffy white tail. With his eyes still closed, Bolt asked: "Mittens, do you want to have children?"

Her tail swayed back and forth as she pondered her answer silently.

"Um…I think it would be nice, but I'm fine without having any." She opened her eyes to see him now. "But…what about you, Bolt? Don't you want to?"

Bolt shook his head, opening his eyes as well.

"I don't need to, Mittens. You, Penny, and Rhino are all I need. I'm happy to just have Penny as my person, and you…as my mate."

_What did he say?_

"Um, Bolt? Did you…?"

Bolt silenced her with a paw, looking at her with a gentle gaze. He said his next few words slowly.

"Mittens, will you be my mate?"

* * *

"Did…did you hear that?" Penny asked Rhino, her heart suddenly jumping. Rhino said nothing, but he heard it too. It was faint over the pounding rain, but he heard some loud sounds, like yelping and squealing. It didn't seem to be from Penny's room. It seemed to be from…downstairs.

"Was that Bolt?" Penny asked, worried. With the light bulb shorted out, she couldn't see anything at all—not even her hands by her side. Her eyes were slowly dilating to their fullest, but she still couldn't even make out the outline of the door.

A soft sound suddenly filled her ears, like a scratching on a wooden board.

_Rhino! _She turned her head to where he supposedly was, but she still couldn't see him. The darkness was starting to disorient her now. She closed her eyes, and felt blindly with her hands. It wasn't long before she brushed across something soft and furry. It grabbed her hand with two paws, halting her hand in place. Soon after, she felt Rhino climbing onto her palm. He squeaked something unintelligible—making Penny wish for the umpteenth time that she spoke animal—before he started tracing words on her palm. Penny did her best to make out what he wrote.

_Go down find Bolt?_

It wasn't exactly what she spelt in her head, but it was close enough. She rolled her chair over to where she imagined the door to the room was, with Rhino nestled safely in her hands. It was amazing how much comfort and security a little hamster could give, but she still wished Bolt was with her. She was happy that he'd found a mate—whether he knew that or not, she didn't know—but deep in her heart, she was a little…concerned. At least, that was what she told herself. But she knew better.

She just didn't want to let him go.

Why wouldn't she be? Bolt was her best friend, and to see him spending more time with someone Penny barely knew, well, she felt left out, to say the least. It didn't help that her smart animals could talk amongst themselves, and that she was out of the loop. She didn't have a grudge against Mittens, but…

Penny sighed. It was all just so confusing. She was still coming to terms with the fact that her dog was in love with her cat. When Rhino wrote it down to her, she didn't believe it. Even when she caught the two of them sleeping side by side, she was still skeptical. But when Bolt licked her in his sleep, smiling contently, she knew that it was true. She knew her dog well enough.

_But how? And why? _This made her wonder what happened on their little journey even more. She was still waiting to hear that particular story.

_No, Penny, stop thinking like this. Bolt still loves you._

Using the hand that wasn't holding Rhino, she groped around in the darkness for the doorknob. After a few unsuccessful tries, she finally found it and slowly pulled it open. She expected to see something, but to her surprise, outside was just as pitch black as the room. She expected the kitchen light to be on, as it usually was. If it had gone dark…

"I think we have a blackout," she finally said calmly. A second later, she fumbled around in her pocket. Rhino couldn't see what she was doing, but he soon found out. A blinding light shone straight into his dilated eyes, and he immediately brought his paws to his face to shield it. The rectangular beam of light could only have come from Penny's phone. She pointed it away from Rhino, barely illuminating the hallway in front of them. She stepped out into the hallway carefully, as if stepping into unknown land. The light threw stark shadows across the hallway, making it look even eerier than it already was in the early morning.

She jumped, almost dropping her phone when she heard a loud meow sound from downstairs. It took a moment before the sound finally registered in her head. It had to be Mittens. First Bolt, now her.

_What the heck is going on down there?_

She took the stairs slowly, seeing that both her hands were full. With every step, she could hear the tired squeaks of the wooden stairs, just another sign of the ageing house. And with every step, she could hear Mittens' voice more clearly over the roaring rain. She was meowing in a fixed pattern, almost rhythmically. She then heard Bolt's soft yaps. She couldn't decipher the meows, and she wished—for the third time that morning—that she could understand them. She wondered what in the world they could have been doing at three in the morning.

A thought popped into her head a second later. She actually stopped her descent just to confirm that she was actually thinking about it. It sort of made perfect sense, in a way. None of the few animal documentaries she'd actually watched before ever mentioned anything like this, or whether it was even possible. Rhino shifted in her hands, probably wondering why she had stopped. Thankfully, in the darkness, her blushes were hidden from Rhino.

_Could they really be…?_

She was about to find out, apparently.

"Rhino, I want you to be quiet. I want to see what they're doing," she said with the slightest of whispers. Rhino didn't respond in any way, so Penny assumed he complied. She stepped even more tentatively now, counting the number of steps to the bottom. When she was close, she clicked off her phone, throwing them into darkness again.

Rhino was starting to feel a rush of adrenaline through his tiny body. It was almost as if he was on one of Bolt's secret missions, but this time he was working with Penny. It was almost a dream come true. He didn't know what Penny was thinking, but he was pretty sure that something awesome was about to happen.


	22. Just Friends

**A/N: **A long time. I know. Christmas, New Year, and Chinese New Year has passed, and I am back. This chapter is the longest so far, and for good reason, too, since I was gone so long.

I am approaching the final arc of this story. The ending had always been in my mind from the beginning, but I always found it difficult to approach it. I still will do my best to finish this with a bang.

Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers of one year. May you have a blessed and fruitful year ahead. Mojotheamoroqm, Aronim, dogman15, Mildirk, Bane767, Mike101, chimpking, and Dragon's Saviour.

This chapter is dedicated to Carl Minez, who gave me inspiration to write this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 22: Just Friends**

In the middle of the living room, Bolt and Mittens sat in silence, thinking about what Bolt had just said.

"_Mittens, will you be my mate?"_

Bolt was still looking expectantly at her with big brown eyes, tail wagging. As for Mittens, it wasn't too difficult to tell what she was thinking from her expression. So much for a cat's natural poker face, she thought.

And yet, Bolt's question was one she had been expecting. She had a feeling that owing to his nature, he'd probably made his decision immediately after she'd told him the truth. It was so typical of him.

"You still want to be my mate?" Mittens asked, trying not to sound like she knew.

"Yes," he replied in all sincerity.

"You're sure about this? You're not feeling a fever or something?" A small cheeky grin grew on her muzzle. Bolt gave her a look.

"Mitts…"

"Yeah, you definitely look sick. I should get you a vet."

"I'm serious, Mitts." His brown eyes didn't lie.

Mittens had just about expected this to happen, and yet she was in awe. She listened once, repeated it in her head, and then repeated it again.

_He wants to! He wants to be my mate! _Indescribable feelings rushed through Mittens in a flood. Her cheeky grin grew to one of elation as he said the words she'd been yearning to hear for so long. At last, at long last, she felt like a part of her life was complete.

"_WHAT ARE YOU DOING!"_

Mittens almost jumped in fright, but instead froze on the spot, her eyes becoming distant. It couldn't have been. She hadn't heard from it for a long time, but now it was back.

_You…! Why are you here?_

"_I should be asking you that," _it hissed. _"Don't you realize what you've just done? You've just ruined his life!"_

_Him? Bolt? Stop spouting rubbish, whatever you are. I did nothing. _Her tone was defiant, but the voice didn't seem to care whether it was. It started laughing hysterically.

"_Nothing…? You've done everything. He trusts you, Mittens. He believed—believes—everything you say. He doesn't know better, and you're taking advantage of him!"_

"Mitts?"

_Taking advantage of him? He loves me too! You know that!_

"_Does he really? Or is it just because he doesn't really know what love is? Rhino taught him, for goodness sake. If he ever met a real girl like him, and he feels true love towards her, what will you do then, mate?" _The last word was said in distaste.

"He…he…" she stammered. _He wouldn't…_

"Mitts? Come on Mittens, talk to me…" Bolt pleaded.

"_He only loves you because he doesn't know…"_

Thunder rumbled ominously. The voice was gone. It didn't stay to mock her, and somehow it made Mittens feel even worse than she would have if it did. She couldn't think of any comeback, any witty remark at all. Once again, the little voice in her head won.

_No…no…I…_

She couldn't do this. Not to Bolt. She would never be able to live with herself if the voice was right.

"…I can't."

"W-what?" Bolt said, completely lost. "But Mittens, you just said…"

"Bolt, please listen." She looked at him with an expression that he couldn't read. "I can't be your mate. Not yet. I don't…I mean I want you to really think about this. Being mates is a lifelong thing, and I want to make sure you know what you're getting into."

Bolt was about to say something, but he decided to hold his tongue.

"Have you ever known a real girl dog before, Wags?" Mittens asked. Bolt was too busy wondering why she had said 'no' to register her words. It was a good ten seconds before he finally processed his answer.

"There…there was one, but she was from the show. I didn't know her that well."

_That's what I thought…_

"Bolt, I think that maybe, the reason why you feel like this towards me is because you haven't had the chance to spend time with other dogs like you." Despite the disheartening news, Mittens said it with a somewhat sad smile.

"That's not true, Mitts!" Bolt was quick to reply. He lowered his voice. "…You know I mean it."

"I know you do, Wags. And that's why I want you to take some time to think about this. I don't want you to make a decision that you might regret next time. I mean, we've only been in love for…well, a day." she laughed.

Bolt didn't feel like laughing. Inside, he was feeling a mixture of emotions that he couldn't place. After so long of keeping it from him, why would Mittens back out now? It just didn't make any sense. He forced out the confusion, trying not to think too much about it.

It wasn't that Bolt didn't know what Mittens was trying to say; he understood her words perfectly. In fact, from her previous question, he had a pretty good idea of why she was refusing. But still, after everything that happened: after their whole adventure, after her efforts to keep the truth from him, after their confession to each other in the garden…she wanted to back out now?

_Mittens…why?_

She didn't look too happy about it either, which made him even more confused. She whispered quietly, "Wags…"

"I guess we have time," Bolt finally said reluctantly. He tried not to come off as being too hard on Mittens.

"Thanks for understanding," she replied softly.

"So, I guess for now, we're just friends?" Bolt asked tentatively.

Mittens padded up to him and sat right under his head—being small enough—and pecked him on his cheek, her eyes closing as she leaned into him and said one word.

"Almost."

* * *

_Great, it's three in the morning, and I'm sneaking downstairs to spy on my dog and cat._

It was difficult for Penny to stand still and just wait for her interpreter to begin translating the animal-speak she was hearing. It became even more difficult when Bolt and Mittens' tones grew increasingly worried as the minutes passed.

She tried to think about something else to pass the time. Anything involving movement was out of the question, so she decided to just close her eyes and think; something she hadn't been able to do for a while now. Everything had been turned upside-down for her, taking her on a roller-coaster ride of emotional highs and lows.

_And all that happened in one night, _she mused.

She played back the events that transpired from the day before till now, waiting for the time to pass. Everything had started when she had left for school—everything interesting that happened to the three of them seemed to happen when she was away. Although, getting hit by a crate probably didn't count as 'interesting'.

* * *

"Mom! Bolt's hurt! You can't ask me to go to school and leave him there!" she had yelled, almost forgetting that he was still unconscious from the near-drowning experience he'd gone through.

"Calm down, sweetie. The vet said he will be alright."

"But he's—"

"—Fine. He didn't take in any water to his lungs, and there aren't any external injuries. He was probably just scared out of his wits."

Somehow, that didn't do much to alleviate Penny's discomfort. Her mom sighed, running a hand through her copper hair.

"I know you're worried, sweetie, but there's not much you can do right now. And it wouldn't look good if you skipped school for this. Rhino and Mittens will be around to take care of him when he wakes up. You trust them, right?"

Penny glanced down at the aforementioned two, who were smiling at her with reassurance, both seeming to say the same thing: We'll take care of Bolt. She was still uncertain, but she couldn't say she didn't trust them. Reluctantly, she shouldered her backpack and stepped out of the front door. But before she took another step forward, she looked back at them. Mittens meowed. Penny sighed and closed her eyes, nodding.

_Take care of Bolt, you two._

A full eight hours had passed before she finally got back home. The moment she stepped through the doorway, her mouth, along with her bag, dropped. Bolt was awake and moving about, much to her relief, but it quickly evaporated in front of her eyes. Mittens' limp and ragged body on the couch filled every part of her vision. Images of her smiling face only a few hours before flashed briefly in Penny's mind, and they were swallowed up by the gruesome image in front of her. It took a lot of restraint to not have screamed out loud at that point. Instead, she looked down at Bolt, mouth hanging open slightly.

"W-what happened?"

Bolt immediately started barking and yapping frantically, his tail complementing his tone as it waved about in alarm. He pointed with a paw at the open door, outside. Puzzled, she turned, but saw nothing other than the garden outside. She returned her gaze to him.

"Bolt, I don't—" she froze, focusing on his paw. She reached out and grabbed it firmly, inciting a surprised yip from Bolt. The red splotch on it was unmistakable.

_It's blood! _True enough, she could see a thin cut beneath the dried blood.

"Mom!" she screamed.

Anger, guilt, fear. Those were the three emotions she felt when her mom finally explained what had happened. She cradled the unconscious cat in her arms, while Bolt restlessly walked back and forth within the small space on the couch next to her. The explanation repeated itself in her head, but she still couldn't believe it.

_A crate? She got hit on the head by a crate? _The ones that her mom mentioned were huge and heavy; it was nothing short of a miracle that Mittens managed to survive with minor injuries.

"You're gonna be okay, Mittens. We're here for you," she whispered. This was the cat that was almost scared to death of her when they first met. Penny was never a cat person, but she was somehow fond of Mittens. She was different from other cats. Most other adult cats would just glare at her, like the two in the studio. Penny could clearly tell Mittens was domesticated before—even if she didn't know beforehand that the cat was declawed.

She had yet to hear that particular story, but right now it wasn't important.

Minutes, hours passed. The clock ticked, Bolt's tail swaying in rhythm with the ticking sounds. Midnight had come and gone more than two hours ago, and Penny was finally starting to feel the fatigue setting in.

_Maybe if I just close my eyes for a moment…_

And she was fast asleep. The next time she opened her eyes, she was in her bed, staring at the ceiling. It took her a moment to realize that where she woke up was not where she had fallen asleep. Her first thought was not how she got there, but it was her cat and dog. Throwing off the covers, she was about to jump off her bed when she heard a squeak from next to her.

Her heart skipped a beat, until she realized who made that sound. Rhino was on her nightstand, out of his ball. He wasn't usually out of his ball, even when he slept. But right now he wasn't in it. Instead, he was standing on his hind paws, with a glint in his eyes that Penny couldn't place.

"Rhino…?"

The hamster pointed with a tiny paw next to Penny. Confused, she looked where she was directed. A small square note was sitting next to her, and from what Penny could see, the underside had some writing on it.

_Wait, don't tell me…_

"Did you write this?" Penny asked, a hint of excitement in her voice.

Rhino nodded.

It was the first time he'd written anything on paper, and Penny was eager to read it. She quickly flipped the note over and read it. She read it once, then twice, but the confusion returned. There were only three characters on the paper, and the message would have been clear too, under different circumstances.

"What is this, Rhino?"

Rhino pointed at the paper again, with a look that said that he was dead serious. He couldn't hold that face long though, and a cheeky grin broke out across his face again. Penny looked back at the piece of paper.

_Bolt_

_Mittens_

And in between the two words, a heart was crudely drawn. A simple, concise message, with no room for doubt. It didn't get any simpler than that.

_Bolt…Mittens…love?_

A squeak snapped Penny out of her thoughts, and she looked up to see Rhino at the door. Apparently he couldn't wait any longer. Finding the situation increasingly curious by the minute, she slipped out of her bed and followed Rhino out of the door. Her clothes were crumpled, because she didn't bother to change out of them after she got home yesterday, as a show of defiance to her mother. She made a mental note to change out of them later.

Rhino abruptly stopped a few steps from the couch and turned to her, putting a paw to his mouth to indicate silence. Unsure, Penny crept forward slowly; she felt like she was about to see something she wasn't supposed to.

The sight didn't instantly blow her away. It wasn't anything spectacular. It was just Bolt and Mittens, and from the look of it, they appeared to be fast asleep next to each other. Their backs were faced to her, but she could see the steady rising and falling of their backs.

"Rhino, I don't…"

_Wait…wasn't Mittens on the couch yesterday? And didn't she have a bandage on her head?_

As if to answer her question, Penny noticed the unraveled white bandages lying discarded in a corner of the room. Mittens head shifted slightly, and Penny caught a glimpse of the cut on her head. The blood was slightly harder to see due to the colour of her fur, but it was clear enough. But that was beside the point: Mittens had shifted, which meant that she was conscious. Relief washed over Penny, and she finally let her shoulders relax.

Rhino walked over to Bolt and Mittens and silently waved Penny over. She circled around the two and followed Rhino's gaze towards them. She resisted the urge to gasp in surprise. Her eyes widened as she saw her dog sleeping closer to her cat than she'd ever seen. There was a smile on Bolt's sleeping face that Penny had rarely seen, and only her imagination gave her a clue as to what happened that morning. Rhino's written words came rushing back to her.

_Bolt and Mittens…love each other?_

She didn't believe it at first, but the more she stared at the two, sleeping soundly in front of her, the more she felt that there was some weight to Rhino's words. He _did _understand them perfectly, after all. But this was the first time that she'd seen them together like this. Which meant that whatever happened that morning, it led to them…falling in love with each other. Her imagination was running wild at the possibilities.

She stared in disbelief at them, then at Rhino, then back at them.

"…I need my camera." She walked away as silently as she could, back up the stairs towards her room. On the way, she bumped into her mom, who was walking down heavily, once again reminding Penny that she was never going to let herself become that fat in the future.

"Morning, sweetie. You fell asleep on the couch, so I brought you to your room."

"Um…thanks," Penny replied, the revelation inconsequential to her at that point.

"What time did you want to leave, Penny? We still need to buy Bolt his birthday present."

Now Penny took notice of her words. She'd almost forgotten that today was Bolt's birthday. If he hadn't nearly drowned the day before, this would probably have been a much more joyous occasion. But now that both he and Mittens were awake, there was still a chance to celebrate his special day properly…an idea started rolling around in her head.

"Mom, I'll be ready in five minutes. But when you go down, can you please be quiet?" Penny cringed a little, hoping what she said wasn't too much of an insult to her weight. Her mom raised her eyebrows, but decided to let it slide this once.

After quickly grabbing her Polaroid camera off her room's study table, Penny descended the stairs and hurried into the living room, before Bolt or Mittens woke up. Angling her camera for the best possible shot, she inhaled, then exhaled before snapping the picture—a little trick she'd learnt from her dad. The photo started printing, and to Penny's relief, neither of them woke up.

"Rhino?" Penny whispered. He looked up at her. She knelt down on the ground, a glint in her eye that Rhino recognized: she had an idea.

"I've got a job for you to do. I want you to help me keep them busy for the day while I…"

* * *

"_Penny!"_

Penny was jolted out of her thoughts by a squeak. She thought she heard her name being called. Rhino was scratching at her hand.

"Rhino?" she whispered. _Did you just talk?_

The hamster squeaked, and Penny realized it was just her imagination.

_Silly me. I actually thought they could talk_, she deadpanned in her mind. _They can't talk, but they can read and write. _The irony was not lost on her.

Rhino had done his job perfectly, distracting Mittens and Bolt while she and her mom went to buy a cake for them. She didn't know how he'd managed to land them on top of each other when she returned, but she had learned a while back that Rhino could work wonders if he put his mind to it.

"_P…e…n…n…y"_

Penny didn't even notice Rhino writing on her hand until he got to the second last letter. She snapped out of her little flashback, and focused her full attention on him.

_Finally! Alright, let's see what they were talking about…_

A loud double-beep sliced through the air like a knife, startling both Rhino and Penny. The phone in Penny's pocket was signaling that it was low on battery, and Penny silently regretted not charging it last night. She quickly stood up and moved before Bolt or Mittens could discover her hiding behind the stairs.

Rhino, not expecting the sudden shift, jumped in panic, gripping tightly onto Penny's hand with his claws. One claw in particular was quite sharp, and the sharp sensation shot through Penny's hand. Instinctively, she yelled and shook her hand, trying to get rid of the pain. Rhino let go, but the force of the moving hand sent him flying across the room.

Penny almost immediately realized what she'd done, and she gasped, "Rhino!" before rushing forward blindly in the darkness. She quickly realized it was a bad idea when she slipped by the corner of the carpet and landed on it with a loud thump. It didn't hurt, but for a moment her heart jumped at the thought of landing right on Rhino. Thankfully, that didn't happen, but not more than a few seconds later, she heard the distinct pitter-patter of Bolt's footsteps.

"Penny?" Bolt called out nervously. Upon hearing his person's voice, he had immediately dashed towards her, with Mittens following closely behind. He yelped when he saw her face-down on the floor. A surge of worry coursed through him, matched only by his confusion as to what she and Rhino were doing downstairs at such an awkward time.

"Penny! Penny! Come on, answer me…" he started licking her face.

Not hurt, but slightly disoriented, Penny got to her knees, holding Bolt with one hand firmly in the darkness. She knew it was him.

"I'm fine, buddy," she assured him. The licking stopped, and Bolt whined.

Her hand was in her pocket again, pulling out her phone and clicking it on. The beam of light was much weaker now, but she could still see Bolt's worried eyes looking at her. She couldn't return the gaze, though.

_Where's Rhino? _She thought, alarmed.

The beam of light swept across the floor, hoping to catch a glimpse of the missing hamster. Penny's hand froze when the light shone on the front door's dog flap, which was flapping back and forth as the wind battered it.

"Rhino?" Penny called out through the flap. There was no response, at least, none that she could detect. All of a sudden, Bolt dashed through the dog flap, barking loudly. Penny tried to stop him, but he was already gone.

A minute passed, with Bolt barking outside. Mittens and Penny exchanged worried looks. Penny was hesitant to, but she couldn't stand waiting any longer. She yanked open the door, and was instantly greeted with a strong spray of rain to her face. She squinted, shielding her eyes with one hand.

"Bolt?" she called out. Her voice was instantly swallowed up by the storm. There was no reply.

"Bolt!" she called out louder this time. The wall of rain was so thick that Penny couldn't see more than a few feet in front of her. The walkway to the road had disappeared, swallowed up into the night. Bolt was nowhere to be seen. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, her body tensing up with every spray of cold water. Then, she heard something.

It was faint, but through the wall of sound, Penny heard a faint yip. Like a hero emerging from the depths of danger, Bolt's silhouette materialized in front of Penny. He was soaked through his fur, but he triumphantly carried Rhino between his jaws. Penny quickly hurried them inside and slammed the door behind her, panting.

Bolt and Rhino were panting too, water dripping from various parts of their bodies. Rhino was disoriented, but otherwise fine. The wind had blown him off the porch and into the garden, throwing him around like a rag. It was fully awesome for him, although he currently felt like throwing up.

"All right, that's it," Penny said in between pants. "You're both getting a bath."

* * *

It took quite a bit of effort, but Penny finally managed to carry Bolt and Rhino into the bathroom on the second floor. It became much easier when the power came back on, and she could actually see the ground in front of her.

Leading the three animals inside, Penny shut the door behind her, amazed that this was actually working. But just to be safe, she locked the door as silently as she could. Fortunately, none of them seemed to notice—or care; Penny wasn't sure which. With a flick of her hand, water started to cascade down the tub, slowly filling it up. The calming sound of running water was a welcome relief from the pounding rain and thunder outside.

Still, Penny was a little jittery over this whole affair. She still had no clue what had happened downstairs, but right now, Bolt didn't look too happy about it. He was silent, keeping to himself. He wasn't even talking to Mittens or Rhino. They were keeping to themselves too, although Rhino seemed to be out of the loop between the two of them.

"…Bolt?" she spoke up.

He immediately looked up at her, ears and tail finally coming to life. He smiled for his person.

_Yeah, he's definitely not fine. _She could see it in his eyes. It wasn't the same pained look from two days ago, when he almost drowned. It was a more…dazed look, like he was lost.

"Come on, buddy. Water's warm," she coaxed, removing his collar and leaving it on the sink.

He was silent as well through most of the bath, although he yipped happily at her when she massaged the shampoo into his fur, and occasionally murmured when she hit a sweet spot. Penny had to resist the urge to ruin the moment by asking what was wrong. Bath time was bath time.

But once again, her inability to understand what exactly was going on frustrated her to no end.

"Heh, you were never this easy to clean back at the studio, Bolty," she commented, trying to cheer him up.

He turned his head to look at her sheepishly, his big brown eyes looking a little brighter now. She smiled back, adding a little more tenderness to her final scrub.

"There we go. You're all done." She stood up, drying her hands on the towel on the counter. Bolt climbed out of the tub and in typical dog-fashion, shook the water off his fur.

"Bolt!" Penny exclaimed, laughing as she shielded her face from the spray of bath water. Bolt yipped playfully, still shaking off as much water as he could. It was something he had rediscovered...thanks to Mittens.

_Mittens..._he thought sadly.

The same cat, who had been staring at the tiled floor the entire time, suddenly turned to Rhino. She'd noticed his expression a while back, and she recognized it as one that he made every time he knew something. Her cat instincts were firing up, but she couldn't tell what it was, exactly.

"Okay, rodent, spill it. What are you up to?"

"I'm not conspicuously planning anything," he replied, a little too conspicuously. A shadow loomed over Mittens, and she spun to see Penny crouched right in front of her, a smile on her face.

"…she is," Rhino finished.

"Hi Mittens," Penny said. The cat tensed up and backed away pretty quickly; she knew that look well. Even though she had a feeling she knew what Penny was thinking, and she knew full well that Penny couldn't understand her, she still asked: "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Rhino answered it for her. "Hamsters can't have baths, cat. Since you're in here, I guess Penny doesn't want to waste the opportunity to give you a bath."

"B-but…" she couldn't believe it at first. But when she looked at Penny's triumphant grin, Mittens had a feeling the hamster wasn't kidding.

_Well, it's not like she can keep me in here._

She turned to run, but a white door stood in her way. She suddenly felt very, very dumb. Of course, Penny had closed it. She wondered how her cat instincts could have failed her so badly. She turned in fear, pressing her back against the door, as if expecting it to just collapse conveniently.

"You knew about this?" Mittens said, glaring at Rhino.

"I had a hunch," Rhino said, shrugging.

_Are you k…forget it. Just get this over with already,_ she thought, her resistance disappearing. Her last act of defiance was an indignant glare to Penny. Penny just smiled and picked her cat off the ground, kissing her gently on the head.

"Don't worry, Mittens. It won't be so bad, I promise."

Mittens sighed and just nodded. She felt her collar being taken off. She didn't make a show of it, but she felt somewhat strange after it was taken off, like she was suddenly a stray again. The discomforting thought didn't last long though, because it was replaced by the uncomfortable feeling of being stuck in a body of water.

_Fantastic. Could this day get any worse?_

"Oh hi, Mittens." Bolt said softly from beside her. He stood on his hind legs, front paws resting on the edge of the tub. He managed a little smile.

"Don't tell me you knew this was going to happen too," she groaned, as Penny started rubbing behind her ears with soap.

"I had a hunch."

"Someone just kill me now…" she buried her head under the water in exasperation.

The rest of the bath went rather uneventfully, with only Mittens yelping when Penny rinsed her off, much to Bolt's amusement. It earned him a splash of soapy water to the face. Not long after, the three animals were curled up on Penny's bed. They were wrapped in towels of various sizes, feeling warm, safe, and comfortable.

At least, that would have been the ideal situation.

Rhino poked his head out from under his towel cover.

"Oh come on, cat. Stop looking so sour."

"So I'm supposed to smile after being forced to take a bath against my own will? I think you're missing a few screws, rodent."

"It's just water, cat," Rhino fired back. "Stop being such a baby. You don't see Bolt complaining, do you?"

"He's a _dog. _I'm a _cat_," she said, emphasizing the two words in a condescending tone. "Dogs like water. Cats don't like water. You understand what I'm saying, Rhino?" she waved her two front paws at him as if he were mentally impaired.

Rhino wasn't listening by that point. He was staring at Bolt, who was just blankly looking into midair.

"You're quiet," Rhino said softly. Bolt looked down at him, still looking a little dazed.

"Just a little bit tired, Rhino."

"And my entire point has become chopped liver," Mittens snapped sarcastically.

It was pretty obvious he was lying, to Mittens anyway. She had a feeling she knew what was on his mind. She was really starting to wonder whether what she did downstairs was—

_Wait a minute._ She wondered why the thought didn't occur to her until now.

"Rhino, what were you and Penny doing downstairs?"

Rhino didn't blink. "Covert operations."

"You were spying on us?" Bolt said, hardly believing Penny would have done such a thing.

"Why were you spying on us?" Mittens asked, making her indignation a little less subtle than Bolt's.

Still, Rhino wasn't fazed. He shrugged nonchalantly.

"Hey, the both of you were MIA. Penny was worried."

"Penny knew we were gone?" Bolt suddenly felt a twinge of guilt. If that was the case, then it made perfect sense that she'd try and look for him; he did the same thing with Mittens, after all.

"But why did she have to spy on us? She could have just called."

Rhino shrugged. "That information is beyond my knowledge."

He had a hunch, but he decided not to speculate on it. Just as he said that, Penny emerged from the bathroom, dressed in a set of pajamas. She was drying her wet hair with a towel, and the slightly fruity smell radiating off her body indicated that she'd just come out of the shower.

"Ah, that was good. Whaddya think, Bolty? Feeling better?"

Bolt whined, looking down at the bed sheets. Penny set her towel down on the dresser.

"Hey…what's wrong, Bolt?" she walked over and sat next to him, using a hand to gently guide his head towards her.

_Penny…_Bolt thought. _I…_

The guilt was eating him alive. He'd gone and made Penny worried about him! How could he have done that to his person?

"Bolt, did something happen?" Penny asked. Bolt whined, flattening himself on the bed along with his tail and ears. Penny could tell he was remorseful about something, but she wasn't sure what. She looked at Mittens, hoping for some answers. The cat averted her gaze as well, hiding under her towel as if taking cover. She finally looked at her hamster, who was just standing in between the two of them, looking very out of place.

"Rhino."

The hamster snapped out of his jumbled train of thought to look at Penny. She was motioning towards her desk, where a stack of papers sat. Rhino understood her silence. She was being careful not to reveal too much.

Penny was about to stand up to get the papers and pencils for him, but he had apparently taken matters into his own paws. He had moved to the base of the table, and was staring the desk down like a hawk.

_The objective is within reach, approximately a few meters off the ground. I can use the drawer knobs as footholds to scale the side of the desk._

Feeling pretty pleased with his analytical planning, Rhino prepared for action. Taking a deep breath, he leaped up with all the power in his hind legs, just like the time where he rescued Bolt from the animal control truck.

He managed to grab on to the knob second from the top, but not long after, he realized that unlike the truck, there weren't any cracks or footholds on the knobs for him to hold on to. The smoothness of the knobs, combined with his weight, inevitably caused his grip to falter. He slipped.

_Argh!_

He shut his eyes, expecting a less-than-graceful fall and a hard impact on the ground. Fortunately or unfortunately, he was only half right.

"Slow down, rodent. We don't need another casualty tonight."

Rhino's eyes shot open. He felt warm, soft fur that wasn't his own, and from the sound it was making, he could tell Mittens had caught him on her back as he fell—just in time.

"Now, would you mind telling me for once what you're doing exactly?" she asked, a hint of frustration evident.

"Uh…"

"Look, I saved your butt. You owe me one."

Rhino took a deep breath, hoping he wasn't going to regret this.

"Penny wants to know what happened downstairs. She hid behind the stairs and asked me to translate what the two of you were speaking. If our position had not been compromised by the phone, we would have left without telling you anything."

_I'm sorry, Penny_, he thought.

Mittens' expression was one of utter incomprehension. It made no sense to her. Penny, doing something like this? She had no idea how to respond to Rhino's words. Her jaw hung open slightly, and without her realizing it, she had uttered one word. "…Why?"

"This is just speculation, but I think she's…worried." He refrained from using the 'j' word. "You've been spending a lot of time with Bolt recently. I think Penny feels left out, since she can't talk with us.

Mittens was speechless.

"…Especially since you're both in love and all…" Rhino added with a whisper.

_What have I done?_ Mittens thought in horror. The voice in her head didn't need to say anything; Mittens already felt terrible inside. If the voice had been around, Mittens had a good idea of what he would have said.

_It would have said that I ruined everything between Bolt and Penny._

She didn't want to believe it, but her mind was already reminding her of when they first started living with Penny, before Mittens had confessed her love for Bolt. Back then, everything was so simple. Bolt was Penny's dog, Rhino had his magic box, and Mittens had a family, shelter, and food. It was all so perfect, until her stupid little crush on him took over.

Her first instinct was to run. To solve everything, all she needed to do was to leave, and everything would fall back into place. Wouldn't it? She gave herself a loud mental head slap for even considering it. Of course it wouldn't.

Right now, everything was just crumbling apart for her.

She couldn't run, so there was only one thing she could do: face it.

"…I understand, Rhino. You're writing it out for her, aren't you?"

Rhino responded a little uneasily, "Yes, I am."

"Then hold on." Mittens leapt up onto the desk in one fluid jump. Rhino grabbed on to her collar just in time, yelling as he flew through the air.

"Waugh!"

Before he had time to catch his breath, he saw that Mittens already had some objects in her mouth—he didn't have time to see what they were—and was already standing at the edge of the table.

"Ready?" she asked.

"No, I'm—" Mittens didn't wait for his answer. She leaped onto the bed from the table, the bed bouncing slightly as she landed. The items in her mouth fell onto the bed, and she turned to see Rhino, only to end up confused. He was no longer on her back. Then, she saw him. He was on the other side of the bed, apparently having flown off her back as she jumped. She trotted over to him.

"You okay, Rhino?" she asked, standing over him.

Still on his back, Rhino raised a front paw into the air, grinning.

"Fully awesome. You make a good steed, cat."

Mittens rolled her eyes, saying, "Yeah, yeah, sure. Is this all you need?"

Rhino scrutinized the items in front of him. A few pieces of paper, a pencil, and a box of colour pencils.

_Good enough._

"Yes, it is."

Mittens looked straight at him with a soft gaze.

"Before you tell her, could you do me just one favour?"

Rhino hesitated for a moment, inviting her to continue. She did.

"Could you help me tell her something? Please?"

Rhino just couldn't say no after hearing her plead like that. He nodded, a reassuring smile forming on his face. "My service is at your command, Mittens. Just tell me what you want to say."

Mittens returned the smile with one of her own. "Thanks, Rhino."

Bolt had listened to every single word spoken between Mittens and Rhino—it was almost impossible _not _to hear them with his oversized ears—and he was lost. Very lost. Nothing was making any sense to him.

"M-Mittens? What…are you doing? Why is Rhino…?"

Mittens looked at Bolt in surprise. She then remembered that he wasn't with them when they found out about Rhino's new skill.

"Just watch, Wags. I think you might enjoy this."

In truth, Mittens was a little worried about how Penny would react to this. But the opportunity was there, and Mittens didn't want to regret not doing this. She had a feeling that what was going to happen next would either fix, or destroy everything that had been formed between the four of them.

She really hoped it was the former.

* * *

**A/N: **I know explanations are needed. I promise that everything in the last few chapters will be explained in the next chapter.


	23. Faith in Love

**A/N:** I'm not done yet. I hope you remember this story. If not, please go back a chapter or two to refresh your memory. I have been trying to work on my writing style, so some things might look a little different from previous chapters. My editor said so, anyway. :P

Also, this chapter was ridiculously difficult to write, having 4 of them in the same room. I sincerely hope you will enjoy it, in any case.

Thanks to side-fish (formerly mildirk), WordNerb93, knight of shame, Carl Minez, Mike101, Bane767 and mojotheamoroq for reviewing.

It's good to be back.

* * *

**Chapter 23: Faith in Love**

One sentence. The first words ever said—in a manner of speaking—by Penny's pets. She didn't know who the words belonged to, but after reading it, she had a pretty good guess. She read the written words out loud.

_Penny, I'm sorry me and Bolt made you worry._

She lowered the piece of paper. Rhino was standing proudly; Mittens was nodding; Bolt's jaw hit the bed.

"B-but, that was what you just…" he stammered. If not for the situation, Mittens would have laughed her head off.

"Yeah, we know, Bolt. Rhino's been keeping it a secret from us as well."

Bolt started turning his head back and forth between Rhino and Mittens, who were starting to find his bewilderment rather amusing. Finally, he stopped and sighed.

"…Why is it that whenever something amazing happens, I'm not there to see it?"

Penny stroked her beloved dog on his head.

"Are you okay, Bolt?" she asked worriedly. Bolt whined, giving her the biggest eyes he could muster.

"I'm fine, Penny. But you…I…I didn't mean to leave without telling you. I didn't want you to worry about me." He lowered his head shamefully.

_Why am I even bothering to try? It's not she can understand me…_

Something clicked.

"Wha…wait a minute…" his voice was trembling.

"A bit slow, aren't ya, Wags?"

Bolt turned. Mittens was grinning softly now. Rhino was already at work, the pencil in his paws moving as fast as he could manage.

Mittens continued. "Well, I _am_ the one who brought you downstairs, so I'm sort of responsible for this."

"T-then, you're going to…"

"Well, I at least owe her an explanation, ya know? But I think she might be interested in what you have to say to her." As she finished, Rhino stepped forward and with much exaggeration, handed the new slip of paper to Mittens. Using her teeth, she gently set it in front of Bolt.

"It's your choice."

Bolt stared at the piece of paper. It didn't take him too long to make his decision. He gripped it with his own teeth and turned his head towards Penny. Being his person for seven years, Penny understood what he was trying to do. She took it from him and read it out.

Like magic, every word Bolt said was written perfectly on the slip of paper.

_"I'm fine, Penny. I didn't mean to leave without telling you. I didn't want you to worry about me."_

Bolt cringed slightly inwardly at the memory, even if it was only from two hours ago. The rain, the lightning, the thunder…waking Mittens up abruptly, going downstairs with her, and then being rejected as her mate. He wondered what would have happened if he'd not woken her up at all.

"Oh Bolt…" Penny wrapped her arms around him. He whined softly. "What happened?"

Bolt didn't know how to feel. On one hand, he was elated that he was able to convey his thoughts and emotions to his person. But on the other hand, he felt really bad about what happened. The two contrasting feelings left him very confused.

"You don't need to tell her if you don't want to, ya know," Mittens suddenly piped up.

"I want to. She's my person."

_I thought so…_Mittens gave Rhino a knowing look.

Rhino didn't need any further prompting. He knew what he needed to do. Saluting at his idol, he said with an overenthusiastic grin: "I am prepared, Bolt."

Bolt smiled back. "Thanks, Rhino."

The rain and thunder had long since been forgotten, unable to penetrate through the little world that the four of them had built around themselves. Never once in Penny's life had she ever imagined herself to be really sitting in front of her dog and understanding exactly what he was saying, even if the words weren't coming straight out of his mouth like she had once dreamed. But one little hamster and one little pencil had made that dream a reality. She could have just picked him up and kissed him out of sheer joy, but she decided to let him focus on his work.

_I was…scared of the rain, _the paper wrote. Penny read it silently in her head.

"Are you okay, Bolty? I don't remember you being scared of rain…"

Bolt was silent a moment. He padded over to Penny's side and using his nose, nudged her pocket until her phone's tip poked out from it. She pulled it out and held it in her hand, alternating her gaze between it and Bolt. It didn't take more than three seconds for her to understand, and when she did, she immediately smiled reassuringly.

"It's okay, I understand."

Bolt relaxed somewhat, returning her smile sincerely for the first time that evening. He knew better than to even think that Penny wouldn't understand. She always did. At the very least, that was one issue somewhat resolved.

Still, the other was weighing heavily on his mind. _Mittens…_

Said cat was silent for the most part, watching the scene unfold before her. Her expression on her face said nothing, hinted nothing as to what she was thinking—or feeling. After what had happened downstairs, he couldn't seem to get a good read on her. He had already agreed to give their relationship time, but he still…he just couldn't grasp the exact reason why she would do such a thing. Granted, her story made sense, but now that he thought about it, there was something missing.

Mittens was hiding something from him again. Of that, he was quite sure. She behaved the same way too, back then. Back in the house on wheels, where she'd hidden her past with her last person. Back when she'd hidden her true feelings from him, just a few days ago.

And now, this.

_Maybe I should ask her about it. I mean, she trusts me, right?_

As he pondered over his thoughts, Mittens meowed, pawing at Penny's leg. She turned her attention to Mittens, who had another piece of paper in her mouth. She took it and read it out.

"_I was the one who brought Bolt downstairs. I wanted to make him feel better. Sorry we didn't tell you, Penny. I know we haven't been spending enough time with you lately."_

Penny fell silent for a while. Her silence seemed to extend over the entire room. Mittens knew this was it. She didn't beat around the bush—Rhino wouldn't have liked writing all that, anyway. She had gone straight into the matter at hand, and the tension was starting to creep up on her. Actually, it had pretty much jumped and pinned her.

After what felt like an eternity, Penny spoke up.

"I guess Rhino told you, huh?"

The hamster, who up to this point had been focusing on his pencil and paper, looked up. Mittens nodded. Penny tucked a tuft of hair behind her ear, looking straight at Mittens. The cat felt like Penny's brown eyes were boring straight into hers.

The cat gulped inaudibly.

A second later, Penny reached out and wrapped her arm around Mittens' body, pressing the scrawny cat close to her chest. She giggled softly.

"Relax, Mittens. It's okay. Really."

The cat could only stare in disbelief. _What just happened? _Just a moment ago she'd expected a cold glare, a lash of anger, or at the very least, some sort of negative reaction from Penny. But here she was, cuddling her as if nothing had happened. She couldn't help it; Penny's ministrations made Mittens blush under her fur. She whispered out, "Ah, um, thanks, Penny…"

"You're welcome."

Whether Penny had somehow, by some miracle, managed to read Mittens' mind or understood what she was saying, or she had just managed to make a logical guess, Mittens didn't mind. Penny had forgiven her. The catastrophe, the apocalyptic outcome she had dreadfully prepared for—didn't happen.

That was good enough for her.

"Rhino, can you help me take a note?"

"Huh, what?" The hamster stood upright suddenly. He shook his head for a moment. "Oh, right." His face remained stony and focused as he wrote out what Mittens said next. On the other hand, Bolt's jaw dropped.

Rhino finished it up and passed it to Penny. She read it out.

"_I just wanted to say thank you for taking me and Rhino in, Penny. Thank you for everything. You really are as kind as Bolt always told me you were_." Penny paused a bit before she found her voice to say the next part. _"I love you."_

Bolt's eyes were still wide. He definitely did not see that one coming. He glanced at Mittens, who looked back at him with a look he couldn't decipher. Happiness? Embarrassment? Somewhere in between, he guessed. He managed a smile back.

Penny seemed just as surprised, but it quickly turned to heartfelt warmth. She squeezed Mittens again, saying, "I love you too."

Mittens meowed affectionately. A little part of her felt better, like a heavy weight had been lifted from it. But just as she was beginning to relax, the other little part of her started tugging painfully. She knew what it was.

"Are you going to tell her?" Rhino suddenly spoke up. Mittens' little moment of relief was interrupted. Penny still continued stroking her back though, unaware the cat's heart skipped a beat.

"W-what?"

"You know, what happened downstairs…between you and Bolt. The reason why she was spying on you both in the first place."

Mittens tensed under Penny's arm. "How much did she hear?"

"Oh I don't know…maybe some barks, a meow or two…" Rhino deadpanned, twirling the pencil with much effort.

Mittens felt like hitting herself with a paw. Of course.

"Did…you hear anything, Rhino?" she knew she was doing a terrible job of keeping her cool in front of the rodent. Rhino, upon hearing the words, averted his eyes on instinct. He said nothing.

"Rhino," Mittens repeated.

The hamster steeled himself and looked straight at Mittens, saying slowly, "Yeah, I kinda heard everything. It wasn't very awesome."

Mittens felt like the wind had been sucked out of her. He'd heard. He'd heard everything. How had he known what had happened downstairs and still have kept a straight face this whole time?

"Look, I'm sorry, Rhino. After all you did for us…"

"Then why'd you do it, Mittens?"

Mittens paused. That wasn't Rhino. Hesitantly, she turned.

Bolt's eyes widened. Before he knew it, the words had come flying out of his mouth. His quickly shut his mouth, feeling the guilt on his back. It was clear he hadn't planned to say anything at all. The room fell silent.

Lightning flashed.

"Bolt…" Mittens closed her eyes. Who was she trying to kid? Even she knew what she'd said downstairs was a lousy excuse. Bolt probably knew that too. Heck, even Rhino knew it. She knew they weren't buying the lie.

The lie.

"I know you're worried about me, Mitts, but…don't you trust me?"

His words were like a knife. She was surprised that the prolonged heart-wrenching situations she'd gone through hadn't literally crushed her heart yet.

"I do, Wags, I do. But I…"

_No buts._

"It's a complicated issue," she continued.

_A complicated issue you can share with him._

"It's kinda personal."

_Personal? You confessed your LOVE to a dog!_

"Mitts…" Bolt whispered. Her head dropped in a sigh of defeat.

"…Alright, I'll tell you. I'll tell you why I said I didn't want to be your mate yet." She slowly clambered off Penny onto the bed, not really caring about her inhibitions anymore. She'd already told him so much; she might as well tell him everything.

"Rhino, help me take a note."

"_Penny, I know you were downstairs. I know you wanted to know what was going on. I was going to tell Bolt about my past. Is it okay if I tell him first? I'll have Rhino write everything out for you by tomorrow."_

Rhino blinked. He rubbed his eyes with a paw, before staring intently at what he'd written. Worried, Bolt lowered his head to look at Rhino eye to eye.

"Hey Rhino, are you okay?"

"Come again?" he asked groggily. "Oh, yes I am, Bolt! I am in optimal condition, as always." He puffed out his chest. Mittens didn't seem to believe him either.

"Are you sure you're up for this? You look kinda sleepy. We could wait till tomorrow…" Rhino cut her off with a paw stuck straight out, shaking his head.

"I am absolutely fine." he stated proudly. "Just let me know when I can commence translation."

Mittens raised her eyebrows and gave him a look, but didn't say anything further. She turned to Bolt as Rhino finished up the last part of the note and passed it to Penny.

"Okay, Wags…" Mittens paused, sighing. "Remember how I was abandoned in New York before I met you?"

Bolt suddenly felt a little uneasy. "Yeah, I do."

"Well, to put it simply, before I met you, I…er…I liked someone else."

Bolt was stunned, but kept a straight face. He nodded, motioning for Mittens to continue.

"He was a tomcat, and he was the first cat who took care of me after I ended up on the streets. But I was wrong about him. He pretended to care, and I believed him. And that's why…" Mittens winced, as if feeling physical pain from saying it out. "That's why I have this." She pointed at the two notches in her ear.

Now Bolt couldn't keep his poker face up. Worry creased his face, and his eyes immediately redirected to Mittens' ear in question. He thought it was just natural all this long. She'd told him it was an accident when he'd asked before.

But now that he looked and considered her words, he could see that the two notches looked distinctly like _bite marks._

"Guys."

Both of them looked up. It was Penny, who was pointing quietly at Rhino. They both turned. Rhino was still standing on his hind legs, clutching his pencil while using it as a crutch, but he wasn't moving, other than his slowly rising and falling chest.

"Rhino?" Bolt called out quietly. The hamster responded with a loud snore.

"Yeah, I kinda figured he'd knock out sooner or later. Guess he isn't one for late night action," Mittens said, smirking.

"Well technically it's morning..." Bolt said under his breath, trailing off towards the end. He didn't really feel in the mood to crack a joke.

Penny rested a hand on Bolt's head. "You guys should sleep too. We've been awake for too long."

Bolt looked at Mittens, still worried about what she had said. Mittens looked back comfortingly, and Bolt knew what she was trying to say. _"I'm fine."_

"I'll tell you tomorrow, Wags. Try not to let it get to ya, alright? You need the rest, too."

Bolt nodded, knowing that it definitely was going to get to him. He padded over to Penny, who was tucking herself in under the cover of her blanket. He laid down next to her, nuzzling Penny's side as she rested her head on her pillow. She kissed him gently on his head, then switched off the lights.

The rain was starting to let up, although it still came down strong. Tonight had not gone as she had expected, but she was rather relieved at the way it finally did. She never _did _get to tell Rhino the story she promised to tell him, of her father.

_I'll tell him tomorrow. _She thought about it for a while. _Actually, I should tell all of them tomorrow. _They were sharing all their stories with her, so it was only fair that she tell them too. Tonight had been only rain and darkness, for not just her, it seemed. Something had happened between Bolt and Mittens, and she knew she had to support them every way she could.

With that small resolution, she drifted off into sleep again, Bolt's soft white fur caressing her skin, while memories of her father caressed her mind once more.

Mittens gently grasped Rhino with her paws, the pencil falling away from his paws. His body went limp. Bolt used a paw to motion her over. Carrying Rhino gently between her teeth, Mittens set him down on Bolt's side that wasn't pressed against Penny's. She hesitated after that, unsure of what to do next.

Fortunately, Bolt made that decision for her.

"Mittens, would you stay next to me?" he asked softly.

Mittens' doubts about him were slowly being challenged, and her inner skepticism was faltering. In any case, whatever happened, she would find out tomorrow. She padded over noiselessly and lowered her body onto the bed. He smiled at her sleepily.

"Mitts, I just want you to know that no matter what happened in the past, I'll still love you."

And then he closed his eyes to rest.

Mittens breathed quietly in the darkness, thinking. She couldn't sleep. Not yet. She was thinking about tomorrow, and how she was going to break it to Bolt. Innocent and naïve as he was, he would probably still be able to tell it wasn't as simple as Mittens was planning to lay out for him. Furthermore, Rhino would be listening, and Mittens was fairly certain he wouldn't know what she would be talking about either.

Still, she felt an inkling of happiness inside her, a little ray of hope amidst the miasma of darkness in her heart. Just because of what Bolt had said. His faith in love. It had given her hope. Hope that she could finally put her past behind her. Hope for a happy ending.

Hope, for their future.


	24. Troubled Waters

**A/N:** Long chapter. Again. Had to split it in two. Again. Hope you'll enjoy another 2-part chapter!

Thanks to Aronim, Mike101, krp101, WordNerb93, side-fish, 1dchouseman, Dragon's Saviour, and Mojotheomegawolf for reviewing.

* * *

**Chapter 24: Troubled Waters**

Morning. The downpour from the night before was slowly starting to turn into a light drizzle. Compared to the night before, it was quiet, and peaceful in the warm house.

Well, almost.

"Wags?" Mittens piped up.

"Yes, Mittens?" he replied, staring straight.

"Did we say something wrong?" a beat later, they turned to Rhino, who was just as wide-eyed as them.

"Hey, don't look at me. I wrote everything like you both said."

They all looked back at Penny, who was clutching a phone to her ear.

"Come on, pick up, pick up…" Penny mumbled out loud. The animals heard a distinct click as the line connected.

"Hello, California veterinarian cent—"

"Matt! They ate pizza! Burgers! Why are they not sick yet? I thought you said you examined them!"

Matt, the vet from California who took care of Bolt right after the fire, was stunned. Penny's frantic voice was not what he was expecting for his first call of the day. He'd heard plenty of other frantic voices before: First-time pet owners unsure of what to do when their pet started throwing up, children panicking over an unmoving puppy or kitten…

He didn't expect this kind of call from Penny, though.

_Oh boy oh boy oh boy…_he settled back in his chair and held up his sandwich.

"Penny, calm down, seriously. You're scaring my sandwich." He chuckled. "Bolt is fine, isn't he? He's still next to you, yes?"

A pause over the line. "Uh, yeah." Penny seemed to calm somewhat.

"Fantastic!" Matt took a bite out of his sandwich. This was the fun part of his job. "So anyway, Penny, how is the cat and hamster you brought home? Have you named them yet?"

Penny still sounded a little stunned. "Yeah. I didn't name them; they already had names before this. Mittens and Rhino."

Matt paused over the line, catching his bologna before it fell out of his sandwich.

"I'm guessing Mittens is the cat. So the hamster is called…Rhino? A hamster?"

Mittens turned to Rhino.

"Seriously Rhino, maybe you should have some other name so people won't have that same reaction _every time _they hear your name."

The rotund hamster merely shrugged, an overenthusiastic grin plastered across his muzzle. "I like my name. It radiates awesomeness."

"Of course it does."

Penny shook her head, suddenly remembering why she'd called Matt in the first place. "Matt, I called because I want to ask you about their dieting habits."

"Right, of course. What about?" Matt replied cheerily.

"Well, apparently while they were travelling across America to find me, they've been eating out of garbage cans and leftovers, which means people food. People food, Matt. Isn't that stuff they shouldn't be eating? Like burgers, chips, you know…stuff that is really unhealthy…" she accentuated on the last point, obviously taking a jab at the pudgy vet.

"How do you know that, anyway?" Matt inquired.

"I asked them about it, and they told me—" Penny paused midsentence. Nobody should have known about her pets' amazing ability to 'speak', since Rhino only started learning a few days before.

"Uh, Matt, I know this sounds crazy, but I asked them about it. They understand me, really. They can nod and respond to everything I say, and—" Matt cut her off with a laugh that even the three animals could hear clearly from where they were sitting.

"Wait wait wait wait," Matt managed between gasps of laughter. "You're saying you _didn't _know they could understand you before this?" he burst into hysterics again, and Penny could imagine the portly stout man plopping his fat rump in a roller chair and spinning around like some maniac.

The three animals exchanged glances, then turned back to Penny, who—if possible—was even more stunned than before.

"Matt! You knew about this all this time?"

"Well of course, Penny. I'm a vet. It's becoming quite common these days to see pets like yours. Well, most of them don't want their owners to know that they can understand them. They prefer the simplicity of it all, you know?" she heard munching over the line.

"Why didn't you tell me before then?"

"I thought you knew. I mean, it's pretty obvious Bolt is a very smart pup, and with the way you told me he acted on the set, I thought you would have figured it out…"

Penny fell silent for a while, rubbing her temples with her free hand. She opened her mouth once to say something, then closed it after a moment's thought. A second later she opened it again, but ended up closing it once more.

_I give up. _She flopped onto the sofa, phone still pressed to her ear, and dryly, she remarked:

"…Is there anything else I should be knowing about them?"

"I'm hungry. Who's up for pizza?" Rhino grinned.

"You're forever hungry, Rhino," Mittens quipped, rolling her eyes. "But anyway, that sounds good to me. We still got any of that seafood pizza left?"

"Uh, Mitts? I think Penny was just talking about us eating people food."

Mittens shrugged.

"I've been eating it on the streets for quite a while. I don't see anything wrong with it."

"I have to agree with the cat for once, Bolt. Delicious, tantalizing, mouth-watering goodness that is pizza cannot be denied as being totally, fully, indubitably awesome!"

"But—"

"Just picture the freshly baked pizza, fresh out of a stone oven, steaming hot and radiating meaty and cheesy goodness. And when you take a bite out of it, you can feel every single juicy bit permeating your taste buds, while the stringy cheese hangs from the end of your mouth…"

By this time, Bolt's mouth had started to salivate. He wondered where Rhino had learned to describe pizza so…beautifully.

He shook his head. _No, I must be good for my person._

"Guys…" he gave them a look.

"Ah fine," Mittens said, raising her paws in surrender. "So what are we going to do while Penny's busy worrying herself out?"

"What do you mean there's a 23.7 percent chance that he _might _get indigestion?" Penny yelled over the phone to a hysterical Matt. The three of them didn't notice.

Bolt continued staring at Mittens, cocking his head to one side, eyebrows raised.

"…Oh."

Rhino moved in front of her now, apparently expecting the same thing from her. Her captivated audience of two sat in front of her, waiting for the story to begin. Mittens sighed, for what must have been the tenth time that morning. The heavy downpour from the night before had been reduced to a slight drizzle, which was oddly convenient; it made an appropriate setting for her story.

A story, from nearly four years ago.

* * *

_Where is he? Where are they?_

The darkness seemed to swallow up the night. A small cat bounded through the dark alleys, every touch of her paws on the ground making a soft splash as the puddles passed her, one by one. She was cold. She was hungry. She was alone.

She was alone.

Another few droplets of icy cold water struck her coat, making her shiver even more. She shouldn't have been out here at this time, and she knew it. But she couldn't help it; she had to look for him, to make sure he was okay. Her caretaker, her guardian, her protector.

_Where? Where did he go?_

How long had it been? Hours? Days, even? Her stomach grumbled in protest of her unintentional fasting. She only knew it had been a long time since she had last seen him. It had been ages since she'd eaten anything, too. The memories were slightly hazy now. Waiting in the empty house for days, waiting for his return. Waiting for the large oak doors to swing open, where she would have given him the happiest meow she could, then nuzzle him to death.

The doors never opened.

She'd gotten worried. Her concept of time was rather vague, but she knew that they'd been gone far too long. Her food bowl, filled more than usual before they'd left had been empty for a while. There had been an eerie silence that descended upon the small house she'd been in. Finally, one night her nerves proved too much for her to handle, and she'd slipped out of the back door, intent on finding them.

The world outside had been long forgotten ever since the little boy had been kind enough to take her in as a kitten. But now, just a year later, she was back on it, and although her nightmarish days had almost been forgotten, she quickly remembered how terrifying it had been on the daunting streets.

A perfectly aimed drop of water landed on her nose, reminding her again why she was out here. This wasn't the warm rain that she liked. This rain was cold and painful. Her wet fur clumped to her skin, and somehow it made her feel smaller than everything around her.

_Okay Mittens, relax. He's out here somewhere. He wouldn't just leave just like that. Something probably happened to him, that's all._

Her train of thought repeated itself fearfully in her mind.

_What if something happened to him?_

"Hello."

"Gah!" Mittens jumped a foot in the air before scuttling back as fast as she could. Her back found a wall, and her blood ran cold. A pair of blue eyes were staring straight at her. She wanted to scream, but all that came out was a pitiful squeak.

"Hey kit, relax. I'm not gonna hurt ya." The voice sounded oddly amused. Mittens was not. Scrambling for an option, she tried to put up a brave front instead.

"W-who are you? What do you want?" Her body was trembling more than her voice. The mysterious figure raised its eyebrows.

"What I want? Well, I guess I could say I want…you." The next thing she knew, she saw fangs and claws flying towards her face. She froze in absolute fear, squeezing her eyes shut when it was just inches from her face.

A wet paw rested on her head. Another pressed her back down to the ground. She waited for the pain to come when the claws would sink into her flesh and he would eat her. The creature's mouth hovered near her ear, and it blew gently in it. Mittens was freaking out inside, but she was frozen still. An audible scream of terror still managed to pass her lips.

"You're jumpy, aren't you?" the voice remarked, amused.

Her eyes shot open. The figure in front of her was now in full view, illuminated by the street lamp above. A brown and white cat slightly bigger than her stood there, looking straight in her eyes. His touch was firm, yet gentle. His face was surprisingly gentle as well, marred only by a tiny horizontal cut above his nose.

Yet Mittens wasn't calming down any.

"Kit, calm down. I was just playing with ya. Where is your owner?"

The mention of her owner jolted her out of her paralysis. She blinked, her tail wrapping around herself in an attempt to protect her, while her ears flattened against her head. Her fur would have been standing on end if it weren't clumped down to her skin. The other cat lifted his left paw from her head, but kept the other firmly down on her back.

"I don't know," she whispered back finally, her head drooping towards the ground.

"Are you lost?"

_I lost them, _Mittens thought inwardly. "Uh…uh huh."

"Okay, I'm going to take my paw off your back. When I do, I don't want you to run, okay? Stay right here."

Mittens nodded furiously. The other cat slowly raised his paw…

_Run!_

And Mittens bolted to the side, in a frantic dash. Not a second later, there was a sharp pain at the base of her tail, and her body was jerked short. She felt like the wind had been taken out of her, and she collapsed in a heap on the wet ground.

"I said not to run."

Shivering, she turned her head back, half expecting him to bite her head off. His paw—the one he had used to hold her head—was now pressed painfully on her tail. She tried to muster some words to say. When she did, they came in a torrent.

"Please don't hurt me please don't hurt me!" she wailed, shivering like a leaf.

The other cat laughed; this kit was hilarious. He wasn't sure how to handle this, but he had a feeling this wasn't the right way to. Still, it was fun.

"Look, I live around here, and I promise I am not going to hurt you."

Mittens stopped struggling, although her breathing was still heavy. Once again, the cat released his hold on her. This time though, she didn't run—partly because she was quite sure he could catch her if she did.

"What's your name?"

"M-Mittens."

"Cute name. Is that what your owner named you?" He smirked. His amiability—of sorts—was starting to dissipate the initial fears Mittens had of him. She replied with a little more voice this time.

"How do you know…?"

He motioned to her neck. Her bright red collar was clearly visible, an obvious sign she belonged to somebody. It jingled in response.

"Also, you're way too timid to be an alley cat. If I had tried that on one, she would've clawed my eyes out." He laughed heartily.

Mittens did not laugh with him.

"Where do you live?" he asked again. "What are you doing all by yourself anyway?"

Mittens' head dipped as raindrops splashed over them once more.

"I can't find him. He didn't come home. I'm looking for him."

It took a moment for the words to process. When they did, the cat held back a growl of discontent. Mittens looked at him, surprised.

"What's…wrong?"

_Of course she doesn't know…_he thought. He composed himself and smiled.

"Nothing, kit. Look, let me be honest with ya here. It's dark out. Wherever he is, he's probably not out on the streets at this time." He turned around to leave. "Just go home, kit. I've had my fun already." He started walking off.

"W-wait!" Mittens called. The cat stopped, against his better judgment.

"What's wrong?"

A low grumble filled the air, and Mittens sat on the ground, embarrassed. He turned to face her, the amused look returning to his muzzle. He didn't seem bothered by the rainwater clumping his fur to his skin.

"You're hungry." He stated matter-of-factly.

"No, I…" Mittens was actually going to ask whether he could help her find her owner, but he did raise a point; she was indeed hungry.

"Aw, does the little kit want something to eat?" he teased.

By now, Mittens was starting to feel a little peeved at the pet name he'd given her. Or was that how he addressed cats smaller than him? In any case, she surely wasn't a kitten anymore. She wasn't fully grown—he outsized her by a fair bit, enough that he could easily pick her up in his jaws—but she certainly wasn't that small.

Still, angrily shouting back at him probably wasn't a very smart idea.

"So, do you want something to eat or not?"

Mittens hesitated a moment, then nodded silently. The cat smiled; he didn't plan on staying, but he figured while he was there, he might as well have a little fun with the sheltered cat. He wondered how he was going to break it to her…

* * *

"Ew! That's disgusting!"

"That's the best scrap I could find, kit. Be grateful; I could have eaten it for myself."

Mittens winced. He had a point; he was being nice enough to care for her-in a sense-while she looked for her owner. She sniffed the food in front of her. It smelt like some sort of strange meat. She'd never seen, much less eaten, something like this before.

Well, she had a decent chunk of it sitting in front of her now. She contemplated whether she should actually eat it, but her growling stomach was quite a good persuader. Before long, she was taking bites out of it. It didn't taste bad, but somehow the fact that it had come straight out of a trash can made it a little harder to digest.

"Um…thanks, er…"

"Keiro," he replied, sounding a little displeased with the question. He turned and faced away from her, tail flicking in what seemed to be annoyance.

"Thanks, Keiro."

Mittens returned to eating quietly. In the corner of her eye, she watched—scrutinised—him thoroughly as he sat doing absolutely nothing, other than sway his tail and twitch his ears from time to time. This cat was a mystery. He'd pretended to attack her for his own amusement, and then he'd stopped and bothered to—according to him—find the best piece of food for her to eat.

"So why did they nerf you?" Keiro asked, breaking her chain of thought. Mittens looked up, still chewing.

"Nerf?" she parroted, obviously not understanding the term.

"They took away your claws, kitten. Why would they do something as horrible as that?"

"Horrible? I mean, it hurt, but I'm sure it was important if they had to do it, right?"

"Naïve…" he grumbled under his breath. Mittens heard him this time though, but said nothing.

"Kit, I don't know who your owners are, but they sound pretty terrible to me. Do you know why people declaw us? They don't like us. We need to keep our claws sharp, and sometimes we can't help it and scratch some of their little furniture. They don't like it when we do that."

Mittens tried to remember the last time she'd scratched something in the house. She remembered her owner not being too mad about it. His mother wasn't too happy about it though.

"It's selfish. What do they get out of it? Nice furniture. And what about us? We can't hunt. We can't defend ourselves. _You _couldn't defend against me if I attacked you."

Mittens' eyes widened and she tensed up. He smirked.

"I'm joking."

Mittens looked down at her clawless digits. It was true; she did feel different without her claws. She remembered the excruciating pain, the sleepless nights, only made bearable by her owner's constant comfort and support when she was wailing in pain. She'd never really thought whether they really had to declaw her.

Why would they have done such a thing?

"Look at you, kit. You're starved. How could they have left you by yourself without food?"

Defensively, Mittens replied, "They didn't! Something happened to them! That's why they haven't come back yet!"

If anything, Mittens' words were making Keiro angrier than he already was. He growled. "I think a safer assumption is that they're gone, kit. They moved away, and left you here by yourself. You're growing bigger now, and it won't be long before they won't see you as 'cute' anymore. They'll just move on and get a cuter kitten to coo over."

Mittens was speechless. How could he have even thought of such a thing? Her owner loved her! He wouldn't have left her behind…

_But…_a small recollection flickered to life in her head. She remembered them packing a huge number of things quickly before they left. Her owner didn't have much time to spend with her before he and the rest of the family left.

"_Be good, Mittens. Daddy said we won't be back for a while, but we left lots of food for you."_

Clearly, the food they'd left out wasn't enough. And they'd been gone too long…far too long.

"I don't…" Mittens started.

"Hmm?"

"I don't believe you. I know he still loves me. He'll come back."

Keiro seemed indifferent. "Fine. I'm not gonna say any more."

As he finished, the light drizzle turned into a huge downpour with a crack of thunder and a flash of lightning. Mittens jumped. Keiro merely looked skyward, where the rain seemed to materialize from darkness.

"If you don't wanna drown, I suggest you move, kit. See ya."

With that said, he took off into the darkness without another word. Mittens didn't need any further prompting, and quickly followed. But the moment she turned the corner, she realised he was gone. The next thing she realised was that he'd probably left her. It dawned on her eventually; he had no reason to care for her, especially not when it was pouring like that.

"Hello?"

No response. It looked like she was right.

She shook her head; this wasn't the time to worry about that; she had to get to shelter. Her home came to mind, but trudging through a heavy storm for that distance didn't seem worth it. She had to find another means to escape the rain.

A large dumpster loomed over next to her. She looked up towards the top. It didn't seem like the most…sanitary of places to hide from rain. Yet it was looking like an increasingly good prospect as the seconds passed. She grimaced, knowing she was probably going to regret this in the morning.

Then, she heard something that made her blood run cold.

Growling. Deep growling, definitely not from a cat. She didn't even have time to wonder what it belonged to before a large dog emerged from the shadows, fangs bared in a menacing growl. She froze, making full eye contact with the huge Rottweiler.

"Ah…" was the only thing she could utter. If she had been scared to see Keiro for the first time, now she was utterly terrified. The dog took a step forward. Mittens had the same deer in the headlights reaction from a while ago. Every bone in her body told her to run, but the memory of Keiro pinning her before made her hesitate.

The Rottweiler snapped his fangs at her, as if somehow he had some kind of longstanding grudge against her that she didn't know about.

_Run...Mittens, run!_

The Rottweiler barked, and then charged at her. She turned to run, but before she knew it, strong fangs grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, and suddenly she was off the ground. Stunned, she didn't resist. In the blurred reflection of the puddles below her, she could see Keiro's outline carrying her through the dark alleyways, twisting and turning corners. After a long time, he stopped, lowering her to the ground. In the darkness, Mittens could hear him breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath.

She herself felt tired suddenly; her two fear-inducing situations had sucked more energy out of her than she'd thought. She quickly glanced around. They were in a large cardboard box, which was being sheltered by…something. Mittens couldn't tell. It didn't matter at that point anyway.

"K-Keiro?"

The larger cat used his paw to lower her head to the ground gently, and before long, Mittens slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

"_They don't care. They just treat you like a toy; when you're old and worn out, they'll just throw you aside and get a new one."_

"_They abandoned you. Declawed you! Left you to starve! Why would you believe in them?"_

Mittens' eyes opened slowly. Morning sunlight streamed into the box, reflecting off small puddles left from the rain the night before. Mittens' fur was more or less dry, but it was in a disheveled mess. She licked her paw silently, feeling the words of her thoughts echoing inside.

_Keiro!_

She looked beside her. He was gone. Not surprising, all things considered. Still, she felt a pang of sadness at seeing him go. A wisp of cool morning air slipped in through the crack at the side of the box, making her shiver a little. It was time to get out from inside there. A little part of her hoping, Mittens pushed her way out slowly into a brightening morning.

The alleyway was deserted.

Mittens slumped. It seemed she had been hoping for too much. She looked around once more just to confirm it was really empty. There wasn't a single movement from anywhere around. The air was still cold. Chilling, even. What did her owner say about it? After the cold winds come, there would be some puffy white stuff falling from the sky…

When she blinked again, Keiro's face filled her mind, occupying her thoughts. She frowned, her mind apparently not accepting the facts: Keiro had left her the night before, came back and saved her, and then disappeared the next morning without saying anything.

It didn't make any sense at all. Nothing seemed to explain his erratic series of actions. She shook her head and sighed. He hadn't been very nice towards her the night before, and he'd scared her out of her wits just for a cheap laugh. Maybe he really _was _messing with her for his own amusement.

His laugh was still fresh in her mind. It replaced her confusion with irritation.

_I should just go._

But her resolution brought forth another question that echoed hollowly inside her.

_Go where?_

The silence of the alley didn't give an answer. The streets were huge. The buildings were huge. Everything was huge. She didn't know if she would be able to find him at all. Closing her eyes, she tried to imagine where he could have been. That place he called 'school'? No, he'd specifically said it was closed for…what did he call it? The something season. What about the park they so often went to? She soon crossed out that idea as well. Too cold for them to be there.

Her collar jingled in a small gust of wind.

"Home…" she found herself saying. _That's right, home!_ Maybe they had come back while she was gone! What if they were looking for her? He…had he gone out looking for her as well? Mittens didn't know, but the possibility had certainly lifted her from her depressed state.

Hope abounding, Mittens took off on all fours towards her house, leaving the alley behind.

Mittens wouldn't know this until later, but not a minute after she had left, another cat bounded in, holding a paper bag between his teeth. He stepped next to the cardboard box and lowered the bag to the ground, puzzled. He was about to call out, but a quick glance at the cardboard box made him hesitate. Slowly and gently, he lifted the cover with his front paw. He could only stare.

"Hey, you're back early," a nonchalant voice called towards him from afar.

The cat turned towards the voice, knowing who it belonged to. His eyes narrowed, and he looked at the owner of said voice accusingly.

"You were supposed to stay here and look after her, Keiro! Where in the world did you go?" he growled.

Keiro didn't say anything. He merely padded over to the box and lifted it open with a front paw. Its contents hadn't changed from a few moments ago.

"Oh, it's empty."

"Of course it's empty!" The other cat seethed. "I asked you to do one thing: make sure she stays here. _One _thing! Why can't you even do that?"

"I got bored. Besides, you already did what you needed to last night. She's probably got stuff she needs to do." Keiro sat down in typical cat fashion and yawned.

"But she's just—"

"A kit?" Keiro interrupted. "That's what I've been telling her. She seems to think otherwise." He smirked at the memory. "If she's smart enough, she'll survive. Probably."

"You…why do you…why can't you—"

If looks could kill, Keiro would have been dead. The other cat forced himself to stop and breathe slowly. He spoke up again after a while.

"Do you know where she went?"

"Nope."

_And that's it, I suppose. _He started walking off. As he did, Keiro called out to him from where he was sitting.

"Why do you care so much about her, anyway?"

The other cat was already halfway out of the alley when Keiro asked his question. He stopped for a moment, looking to the side. Without turning back to look at Keiro, he responded.

"You should know. We've been there." There was no response from behind him. As the other cat started to walk again, he added one last thing.

"You've changed, Keiro."

* * *

Silence. Darkness. Dust.

Any hopes Mittens had started to wane after she saw her home's garden. Weeks of neglect had caused the grass to grow unabated, and they still hadn't been trimmed…or touched in any way at all. They were even taller than her now. When they swayed in the wind, they looked like they were trying to ensnare Mittens and eat her. At least, that was what she pictured in her head.

Mittens shook her head. She couldn't be negative. There was still a chance they were inside. Maybe they just hadn't cleaned up the garden yet after being gone for so long.

With that last bit of hope inside, she leapt onto the windowsill and peered through the window, into the house. Sunlight streamed in, lighting up familiar corners of the living room, but there was no one inside. The furniture, as far as Mittens could see, had slowly started to collect dust.

They still weren't home.

Mittens felt the uncertainty, sadness and fear in her heart roll up into one and hit her where it hurt. The questions she had asked herself for several days now came flooding back in full force. How long was she going to wait for them? Forever? Could she wait forever? Forever was a long time...

A clopping of feet drew her attention away from the house. A man clad in a blue suit was walking towards the…mailbox? That was what it was called, if her memory served. He opened it, grumbled something inaudible while pushing something inside, slammed it shut, and walked off, never once noticing Mittens sitting on the windowsill.

One second passed. Then two. After that Mittens couldn't hold back her curiosity. She jumped back onto the walkway, taking care to avoid touching the self-proclaimed cat-eating-grass. Once she was quite sure she had placed a safe distance between her and them, she bounded up to the base of the mailbox.

_That thing is tall…_

Her head was tilted almost vertically just to get a glimpse of the top. From where she was, she could see it was bulging noticeably. Some corners of letters were even poking out of the corners of the mailbox. Mittens had an unexplainable urge to open it. Badly.

She tried pushing its leg. It didn't even budge. The leg was apparently made of metal as well. She tried head-butting it. A second and a pained "ow" later, she realized it wasn't a good idea. She rubbed her sore head with a paw.

"Hello!"

Mittens jerked up in surprise, expecting to see someone right next to her. She thought she'd been alert enough to notice if someone had snuck up on her again.

But when she looked around, she realized there wasn't anyone next to her. Puzzled, she looked again. Now she saw someone a slight distance off. And that someone was not who she particularly wanted to see right then.

"Keiro? What are you doing here?" her tone was less than warm.

"You're Mittens, right?" the cat replied, seemingly concerned with something else. "Are you feeling okay?"

Mittens didn't know whether it was her, or her bump into the mailbox, but she was starting to feel crazy. So now he'd abandoned her twice, and come back for her. Twice. She wished she had claws to scratch him with. Or a very big stick to hit him with.

And why did he look like he hadn't seen her before this?

"Look, Keiro. I dunno what's going through that head of yours, but…" she trailed off towards the end when he raised his paws in a surrendering gesture.

"I'm not Keiro," he quickly responded.

_Okay, this joke is going too far. _What did he mean he wasn't Keiro? He looked like him, he knew her name…how could he not be Keiro?

She paused, sniffing the air. Her train of thought was interrupted by the smell. It wasn't Keiro's smell. The fake Keiro stepped a little closer now, allowing Mittens to get a better look at him.

…He looked just like Keiro.

There were differences though. Both Keiro and the new cat shared the same predominantly brown coat and white fur around their muzzles, but while Keiro had white fur covering the lower half of his hind legs, the new cat instead had white fur covering the tip of his tail, much like Mittens. Also, he was missing Keiro's noticeable scar above his nose.

"I'm sorry about what Keiro did to you yesterday. He's…well, he's an idiot."

The cat's strong choice of words caught Mittens off guard.

"Who are you?" she finally brought herself to ask.

"Kasal. I'm Kasal."


	25. Strangers Like Me

**A/N: **6 months. Oh dear. Thankfully things have cleared up so I can finally update regularly. Until march when I enter the army for mandatory national service. It'll be a little slower, but definitely not another 6 month absence.

Also, during this long period of time, the wonderful MadRacer has done so, SO many beautiful pictures that are the official (If I can really say official) artwork for this story. You can see all of them at his deviantART account which I mention in my profile.

Thanks (so very belatedly) to Jack104, Starfiction103, 444teme444, Julie Horwitz, BlackCatNeko999, PardoNightwalker, Bhuggins, Carl Minez, Aronim, Jondemusiq, side-fish, Cloudsword, Mojothemegawolf, krp101, dogman15, Bane7567, Splatman, and WordNerb93 for reviewing. Thanks too to Arkazu, my faithful editor, who will be joining me in our army life soon.

* * *

**Chapter 25: Strangers Like Me**

"Who are you?" Mittens asked.

"Kasal, I'm Kasal."

Mittens was still wary, casting him a dubious look to match her sentiment. The other cat—Kasal—returned the glare with a gentle look. Mittens still continued staring.

"I asked Keiro to keep an eye on you, but it looks like he screwed up. Again." He rolled his eyes. "I was worried that after last night you'd still be freaking out. I'm sorry for being so rough. I didn't hurt you too much, did I?" he asked, concerned.

"How do you know me?" _And how does he know about last night?_

Kasal looked back, seemingly confused. Then suddenly, the realisation hit him, and his eyes widened.

"Oh, I guess that explains why you said Keiro's name…"

_What's going on? _Mittens thought to herself. This cat was just as weird as Keiro, if not more. Why did he say those words? He was speaking as if it was him who had picked her up in his jaws and—

She froze.

_Unless…_

Her eyes widened.

_Oh boy._

No way. No way it could have been.

"Um, Kasal? Were you the one who saved me last night?" she asked.

Kasal nodded.

At that moment, Mittens felt like sticking her head in the ground and just staying there. She was mortified. _He _saved her from the Rottweiler? _He_ brought her to safety? How could she have thought he was Keiro? And she'd been so rude to him, too…

An awkward silence passed between the two. Mittens was going a deep shade of red, although it was hidden under her black fur. This was the most embarrassing moment in her life, as far as she could remember.

Kasal however, didn't seem changed by the realisation. He glanced over at the house before them as a cold breeze blew through the garden, rustling the grass and tickling their fur. Mittens looked back up at him.

"Are you okay, Mittens?"

"I…I'm sorry. I thought you were Keiro…"

"It's okay. I don't blame ya," Kasal said, smiling. "A lot of people say we look alike. It happens a lot."

Somehow, knowing that didn't make her feel any better about mixing the two of them up.

"How do you know Keiro?" she asked, already having a pretty good guess.

"We're brothers."

_Yeah, I thought so. _She fell silent after that. Too many questions were bouncing around in her head. Where did Keiro go? What was Keiro's brother doing here? Why did he save her last night, and how did he know where to find her?

More importantly, what was she supposed to say now?

"Is this where you live?" Kasal asked quietly, deciding that for her.

Mittens was silent for a moment, then nodded.

Kasal looked at her house, then back at her, more specifically, at the red collar around her neck. His eyes gazed at her sympathetically.

"You're waiting for him, aren't you?" he asked softly.

His words stunned Mittens, not just because he was right, but because the mention of her owner sent a rush of memories through her, making her heart ache badly. She looked down at the ground, pressing her paws closer to her body while her ears flattened against her head. She didn't say anything.

The new cat—Kasal—padded softly over to her side. She didn't protest or back away, but she stood still, watching him in the corner of her eye. He sat down next to her.

"Hey, don't worry. He'll come back. If you love him, he'll come back."

His presence next to her made her look up at him. He looked comfortingly back at her. The garden grass swayed back and forth in the cold wind, the same wind that blew through her fur and chilled her to the bone. But somehow, even though she didn't know this stranger in the slightest, she felt a radiating sense of warmth and comfort from him.

"Would you like something to eat?" Kasal asked.

The words were similar to what Keiro had said to her, and it made her wince uncomfortably at the memory. The fact that Kasal looked like him didn't help either.

_No, he's not Keiro._ _I should give him a chance._

"Mittens?" Kasal asked again.

She swallowed, feeling a chill in the cold air.

"Kasal…? Will he…will he really come back?"

"_He's gone and left you behind. He's not coming back," _the shadow of Keiro hissed in her mind.

Mittens could see him hesitate, but after a moment she saw a resolution in his eyes.

"He will. Come on, we should get you some food first."

She still didn't move. Kasal smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, we can come back later. I'm sure he wouldn't like to see you starved when he comes back, right?"

A moment of hesitation, but Mittens reluctantly nodded, her eyes still cast over the silent house.

"Hey, maybe we can get that mailbox open too. Whaddya say?"

Mittens turned to look at him, suddenly feeling embarrassed that he brought up her little failed attempt at opening the mailbox. Her head still hurt. His blue eyes were looking at her hopefully, and she could just make out the very slightest of a playful grin on his muzzle. The smile was genuine. She nodded slowly, feeling her spirits lift just ever so slightly.

* * *

Breakfast wasn't what Mittens had expected. She'd expected more food out of the trash, but Kasal had shaken his head, saying that whenever he could, he would go for something tastier. She asked him what he meant by that, but he had merely smiled and told her to wait and see.

His ambiguity had certainly piqued her interest.

After walking for a few minutes, with Mittens feeling as awkward as she could have felt the entire way, Kasal decided to speak up. He asked her questions about herself: How old she was, what she liked to do, what her owner was like…

At first, she answered in short, one syllable words, but with friendly laughter and gentle coaxing, Mittens found herself speaking up a little more, and eventually even asking questions of her own.

What surprised her most was his age; he was only a year older than her, or so he claimed. It was also strange, how he never made any mention about Keiro, even though they were brothers. In any case, she didn't feel like bringing it up either.

"Um, Kasal? Where are we going?"

"Back to where you woke up. I actually already went to get breakfast for us. I guess I forgot to take it with me when I went to find you."

He brought up something Mittens had been contemplating whether to ask him about for a while. Why had he saved her? She thought about asking him right there and then, but it didn't seem like the appropriate question to ask.

A few more awkward minutes later, the familiar brown cardboard box came into view. Kasal started looking around warily, sniffing the air, ears twitching. After a while he relaxed, muttering to himself, "Looks like he's not here…"

"Who is?" Mittens blurted out before she could stop herself.

"Keiro. He was supposed to watch over you while I went to get breakfast." He sighed. "I guess Keiro felt he had better things to do."

Mittens thought she heard a little bit of bitterness at the end of Kasal's sentence. She forced herself to stay silent as Kasal walked over next to the box, looking around. He frowned. Apparently what he was looking for wasn't there. Kasal paced about, looking on top of the box and behind it before slumping. Then his ears perked up.

"Kasal?" Mittens asked.

Kasal didn't answer, instead slipping into the box. A few seconds later, he popped back out, paper bag held triumphantly between his teeth.

"Well whaddya know, looks like he has a heart after all." Kasal chuckled. Mittens padded over to him, cocking her head curiously.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Breakfast," Kasal declared proudly. He turned the paper bag over with his paws. A hotdog dropped out onto the ground, in all its greasy glory.

Mittens still looked decidedly confused. That is, until she got a good long whiff of it. The warm aroma tickled her nose, and she found her stomach growling again.

"Someone's hungry," Kasal teased. There was a difference between Kasal and Keiro's teasing, though, mostly that Kasal was much nicer about it.

"How did you get this? Did your owner give it to you?" Mittens asked, eyes never leaving the hotdog.

Kasal chuckled. "Well, I had to solicit it out of a random passer-by."

Mittens stared blankly.

"I begged a stranger," Kasal said, a little abashedly. "It's more of a dog thing, but it helps keep me fed."

She cocked her head, puzzled.

"Begged?"

Now it was Kasal's turn to stare. The stare quickly turned to a laugh, which made Mittens go very red.

* * *

"Well, begging is when you act cute to get humans to give you something. They like it when we do that." Kasal took a bite out of his share of the hotdog.

"Why?"

"Because humans are hopelessly attracted to cute things. Like you." The last part made Mittens paw at the ground, embarrassed. "It seems the older I get, the harder it is for me to beg. Makes me wish I could have stayed a kitten longer."

He watched as Mittens finished the last bit of her hotdog ravenously.

"Do you like it?"

Mittens nodded. It was the best thing she'd ever tasted.

"Your owner never gave you this sort of food to eat?"

Mittens shook her head.

"He said it wasn't good for me to eat. Same with other human food too."

"Shame. You've missed out on a lot." Kasal let a smile cross his face as he stared dreamily into thin air. "There's plenty of awesome tasting food that humans make that we can eat. But your owner is probably right—this kinda stuff isn't good for us." He winked at her. "Doesn't stop me though. Want more?"

Something nibbled at the back of her head, but only for a moment. She nodded quickly.

With a chuckle, Kasal got to his feet, motioning for Mittens to follow him. She obeyed, bounding up next to him, before realising she'd gotten a little bit too close than she liked. Kasal didn't seem to notice though, as she quickly shifted a few inches away from him to create more space between them.

"Begging isn't just about taking. It's a give and take situation," Kasal said, looking around at the surrounding buildings.

"What do you mean?"

"Humans that are nice enough to give you food usually just want some affection in exchange," Kasal replied. "You know, nuzzling, purring, mewing and the sort. Besides, if people do give you food, it's only right that you stay a while and let them pet you in return."

"You mean that's all you need to do to get food?"

"Well yeah. But don't think it's so easy. It's not. Not all people are nice, and from time to time, you'll meet people who won't be so happy to see you. I'm sure Keiro would agree…"

Mittens casted a glance at him.

"Anyway, we're almost there. Now be careful, and stay on my tail. Got it?"

The sudden change in Kasal's demeanour surprised Mittens, but she otherwise nodded and followed close.

The sounds of a typical New York street were creeping their way through the alley now, echoing off the narrow high walls. A mixture of sounds bounced around, from the rumble of cars and trucks, to the clopping of dress shoes on the pavement. Mittens' ears twitched with every sound. It was a stark contrast from the relatively quiet street she lived in. She almost jumped when she saw a huge black object race past, followed by another, and another…

"Hey, relax. They're just humans in big fancy machines," Kasal assured. "You're fine with humans, right?"

Mittens nodded, feeling sheepish when she realised she knew exactly what the big black machines were: they were just cars. She was more jittery than she would have liked to be, especially around Kasal, although she wasn't exactly sure why.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, with Mittens constantly straining her neck to see beyond the alley, they arrived at the exit.

The first thing that came to her mind was buildings. Lots and lots of buildings. She'd never really been outside of the house ever since she was adopted, and seeing them and the fast moving cars again made her somewhat disoriented.

"Alright then, stay here and watch me. And don't laugh," Kasal teased.

Mittens didn't have time to ask what he meant before he ventured out into the open, across a sea of legs and briefcases. She quickly hid herself right at the corner of the alley, where a dumpster's shadow hid her from view. From there, she watched silently as Kasal moved across the street and towards a hotdog stand.

Her heart jumped a few times as he narrowly slipped past the cars on the road. But he did make it across safely, turning back for a moment to look at her before continuing along the pavement.

It was after he made it across that things started to get tricky. She tried to keep her eyes on him, but passing humans and cars constantly blocked her view. For a brief second, she saw him, seemingly 'talking' to the man in front of the stand. But then she was blocked again by a passing group of cars. Now she was starting to get frustrated.

He did tell her to stay, but he also told her to watch him—which was something she couldn't do while sitting there.

Pleased with her rationalisation, she quickly bounded off towards him, careful to avoid any cars on the road. There was a lot of honking and screeching of tires—she was pretty sure she heard some angry shouts—but Mittens managed to make it through unscathed, but with her heart still pounding in her chest.

_There he is!_

Kasal was in full view now, in the same spot she had last seen him in with the hotdog man. She heard him meow and spin around in a circle twice, before looking back at the man with big, pleading, blue eyes. He even stood on his hind legs and rubbed against the man's pant leg.

The man bent down, removing the plastic gloves he used to prepare the food. He left it on the stand and used a rough, hairy hand to scratch Kasal's chin. Kasal purred affectionately in return to his ministrations. The man laughed.

A smile was starting to form on her face, and eventually Mittens couldn't help but snicker at the display. She had to get a closer look at this. She started walking closer towards him, forgetting for a moment that she was moving to the middle of a sidewalk that was filled with walking people.

She soon realised it was a bad idea.

The man walking right behind her went completely unnoticed until his shoe connected with her back. They both yelped, and the next thing she knew, a splash of icy-cold liquid landed straight on her head, soaking her completely. She squealed loudly, jumping about a foot into the air before landing on her back, her body immediately tensing up at the cold bite of the liquid. The human tumbled over her—thankfully not landing on her—and hit the ground a few inches away.

_C-Cold! _Her brain wasn't able to process much more than that. A few seconds later, the human that she tripped came into her vision, kneeling on one leg as he tried to push his lanky body back up. He was holding on to a surprisingly large number of bags in his hands. Even so, he still managed to carry a half-empty cup filled with pink liquid in his right hand.

Looking back down at herself, she could see the same pink liquid dripping from her fur. A chill was spreading across her whole body, and she shivered uncontrollably.

The man moved closer to her, saying, "Hey…"

Not a moment later, she felt a warm hand being wrapped around her waist. Immediately she started struggling and squirming, every movement a sting to her limbs. The man let go after a few more impassioned struggles, and she quickly bolted off, away from Kasal and the hotdog stand.

People walked briskly down the sidewalk, coats flapping and shoes clicking on the ground. They took no notice of the small black cat darting past them. Mittens wasn't thinking about them either. Right now, the only thing she was concerned with was getting away from there.

She rounded the corner into yet another alley—they all looked the same to her. She was panting heavily, and her fur had completely clumped to her skin. Her fur was wet and sticky all over, and the wind wasn't doing much to help either. Frowning, she shook her paw, but other than getting some of the liquid out, it didn't do much to ease the discomfort she was feeling.

_I should probably ask—_

She gasped. Kasal! She'd forgotten all about Kasal! What if he was already looking for her? Getting to her paws, she was about to exit the alley, when she paused. She didn't plan on tripping another person again, so she poked her head out cautiously.

A pair of blue eyes stared right back at her.

"GAH!" Both Kasal and Mittens shouted, falling backwards almost comically. Kasal was the first to get back to his paws, and he quickly went over to Mittens.

"Mittens, are you okay? I heard you scream, and then I saw you running, and…" he sniffed her curiously. "Why do you smell like strawberry soda?"

"This is strawberry soda?" Mittens asked, getting to her paws and looking at her clumped fur.

"Let me check." He licked her cheek. "Yep, it's strawberry soda."

The lick left Mittens with a very embarrassed face, and she was quite sure Kasal could see it, too. He didn't seem concerned with that, though.

"Um…Mittens? Why are you covered in strawberry soda? And why were you running away from the man?"

"Uh…I may have tripped him…" Mittens replied sheepishly. Face still flushed, she told Kasal how she had followed him, stood in the middle of the sidewalk and completely invited someone to come along and fall right over her. Kasal gave her a look that more or less summed up how Mittens thought he would have reacted. He shook his head.

"Well, at least you're okay. I did lose the hotdog though, since I had to chase after someone..."

"Sorry..."

"Never mind. We need to get you cleaned off, though."

She brought her paw to her face to lick it clean. Kasal raised his own paw and stopped her.

"No, don't bother trying. These sweet drinks usually stick to your fur, and it won't be easy to get it off. You need a bath."

"A bath?" Mittens repeated. Memories of her first time in the tub came back to haunt her. "I don't like baths..."

"Me neither, but you still need it. If not it's not going to be healthy for your body."

Mittens backed away a little, shaking her head defiantly.

"Look, I'm not gonna let you walk around for the next few days with your fur all sticky. It'll stink too. You'll feel itchy, and you could have some sort of, I don't know, funny stuff growing on your fur."

"It's still better than a bath…" Mittens squeaked.

Kasal sighed, standing up.

"Oh my gosh Keiro what are you doing right behind Mittens!?"

Mittens' eyes widened, and she spun. A moment later she felt herself being plucked off the ground by the scruff of her neck into the air. She yelped, flailing around helplessly in the air. They more or less didn't have an effect on Kasal, who held her steadily in the air.

"Kasal! You...you tricked me!"

"Mm-hmm." Kasal mumbled happily. Pleased with his progress, he trotted off, back towards Mittens' home.

* * *

"Well, if I ever get my fur dirty like that, I'll usually look for a tap like this," Kasal said, motioning to the tap fixed to the side of the house. "Sometimes the tap has some long tube in it, and it goes to some water spraying thing. The humans use it to water the plants."

"I still don't want a bath," Mittens whimpered.

"I'm not giving you a choice. Now come on, the longer you take, the harder it's gonna be to get off."

Mittens wordlessly but reluctantly obeyed, standing under the tap. She looked like a condemned cat about to face her execution, with Kasal as her executor.

"Geez, this thing is tough to turn…" he muttered.

As he finished saying that, the tap turned with a rusty squeak, and cold water rushed out of the tap and onto Mittens' head. She jumped, but managed to hold back her squeal. Kasal held a paw to her head, and she tried her very best to keep still.

It wasn't easy.

"Relax," Kasal instructed. He started rubbing her head with his paws, moving her limbs and tail under the flow of water. She heard him talking softly to himself.

"Geez, human hands would make this so much easier." He pulled her head from the flow of water, allowing her to breathe. "She would have made this easier…"

_She?_

Mittens heard him, loud and clear. The chilling water running over her back was quickly forgotten.

"Who's 'she'?"

"Oh, my previous owner. Well, sort of, anyway."

"You have an owner?!" Mittens broke out of his grip and turned to face him with wide eyes. "Then why are you on the streets? What happened to your owner? And what about Keiro?"

Kasal laughed, mostly because Mittens looked hilarious with her fur soaked and eyes wide, seemingly unaware of the stream of water flowing onto and down her head.

"Slow down, Mittens. I'll answer your questions. First, me and Keiro were taken into the shelter together when we were small. The lady who took care of us didn't really take us home like what happened to you, but yeah, she was like an owner to us."

"Shelter?"

"It's…a place where people go to take home animals that are rescued on the streets. Anyway, we were there for a while. The lady fed and played with us every day while we were waiting to be adopted. She kept talking about wanting to take us home too. We were very happy. But then she stopped coming. We kept waiting, but she didn't come back. In the end, we both had to leave the shelter."

Mittens waited for more, but Kasal had stopped talking. She was hoping for more details, especially regarding why they had to leave, but Kasal seemed reluctant to do so.

"Is...that why Keiro hates humans? Why does he hate humans so much and you don't?" She winced a little. "You don't...right?"

Kasal laughed, but it sounded a little sad to Mittens.

"No, I don't. But well..." He looked down a little. "He wasn't always like that. After what happened at the shelter, he changed. He became upset and angry. I was upset too, but something happened to him to really make him hate them."

Kasal sighed, before continuing to speak. "It was last year, around this time. It was cold, we were hungry, and he was looking for food for both of us. He went up to a bunch of kids to beg for food, and they threw stones at him. Kicked him around like a ragdoll and almost broke his leg. He was lucky he didn't..."

Mittens felt her stomach turn.

"That's why he has that scar on his nose. I wanted to bring him to a vet, but he refused. He said he was an idiot for trusting humans, and that he'd never go near one again as long as he lived. I tried talking to him, telling him that not all humans were like that, but he didn't want to listen. He was probably angry at you yesterday because you still care about your owner, even though he thinks your owner has abandoned you."

_Abandoned. _Keiro's voice hissed in her mind. Her ears flattened against her head, and she looked down at the ground.

"Hey, don't you be like that too," Kasal said, frowning. "Look, not all humans are bad. Sometimes, things happen that they can't control. I'm sure the lady really wanted to adopt us, but maybe she just couldn't. Maybe she couldn't afford it. Maybe something happened to her family and she had to go far away to visit them. I'm sure your owners really want to come home and see you, but something's probably holding them up. I'm sure they miss you very much."

Mittens looked down at the ground. She wanted to believe it was true, but she kept thinking of Keiro and Kasal. What if her owners took a year before they came back? Was she really going to wait that long? What if they never did come home? Like that lady who took care of Kasal and Keiro?

She soon felt a paw on her shoulder, and she looked up to see Kasal looking straight into her eyes.

"I know what you're thinking. But they'll come back. I'm sure they will."

She wanted to believe him so badly.

"Promise me."

"W-What?"

"Promise me you won't give up on your owners. You know they love you, and I'm sure you love them, right?"

_Yes...I do. I told myself that they'll come back. I'm sure they will! _She reassured herself inwardly.

Mittens nodded slowly.

"Then we'll sit here and wait for them to come home. While we wait, I'll keep you company and show you around. How does that sound to you?" He smiled.

Mittens couldn't believe her ears.

"I'd like that," she said quietly. It was the best thing she'd heard in a long, long time. She pawed against the ground slowly.

"Um...Kasal? Why do you care about me so much? I really appreciate it, but...I mean you barely even know me..." she trailed off towards the end.

"Well..." Kasal rubbed the back of his head rather sheepishly. It was the first time she'd seen him like that.

"When Keiro told me about you, I thought I might have found a cat like us. You know, used to be owned by humans. Most cats out here are pretty much loners, and they hate humans. I didn't want you to be alone like we were. And I thought I could have a new…friend." Mittens could almost see his face going red through his fur.

He suddenly didn't look as big as Mittens thought he was. Now she was seeing a different part of him. She didn't mind it in the least. She was starting to think this Kasal character wasn't so bad after all. Even Keiro...he had his reasons. She looked back at him, smiling genuinely for the first time that morning.

"If you want, I...I'd like to be your friend."

Kasal blinked, his eyes hopeful. A smile was starting to cross his own face as well.

"And, um...when my owners come home, will you..." Mittens shuffled a little, feeling a little embarrassed herself. "Will you and Keiro come home with me?""

Kasal's smile disappeared. Mittens winced, already starting to regret asking.

"Well, I...I'd love to, Mittens." He replied, still a little taken aback. "I don't know about Keiro though..."

_Yeah, I know..._she nodded.

It was going to be tough, for sure. But she trusted her owners. They were the nicest people in the world, and she was confident they'd be willing to take another two cats in, especially considering the way Kasal and Keiro were living.

Now she just had to make Keiro see that.

"Alright, once you're dry, shall we get back to our begging lesson? We were about halfway through it before someone decided to run away…" he grinned.

Mittens narrowed her eyes, then stood up and pushed him. He fell over, but grabbed her with his paws and brought her down to the ground with him. They tumbled around several times on the grass, laughing, before Kasal finally let her up to catch her breath. He was smiling widely.

"Come on, I've got a lot to teach you."

* * *

**A/N:** And unfortunately, it's not a 2-part chapter. I had to make it into 3 parts. Sorry about that.


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